Mae Elizabeth "Betty" Robertson Gullickson

2/19/1927 - 10/27/2015

Betty was born to Mae Alberta Evans and John Alexander Robertson in Calgary and raised in Stettler, Alberta, Canada. In 1949 she married her husband, Waldo, who passed away in 2012.

Betty and Waldo had two sons in Alberta, where they met, and a third son in Texas. A long-time resident of Houston’s Nottingham Forest neighborhood, Betty lived previously in Richardson, Texas. Betty and Waldo lived in 42 places up and down the Canadian and American Rocky Mountains, though her heart was never far from Buffalo Lake near Stettler. The experience of living in the Southwest gave Betty an enduring love of the region’s culture and wide-open landscapes—especially Shiprock Mountain and Bandelier in New Mexico.

For many years she volunteered as a docent at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. In 1980, she was part of a group that assembled “The Dinner Party” at the University of Houston, which she attended. She appreciated collage, jazz, and good humor.

Betty co-founded the Women’s Forum at Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church. The Sunday class provided a venue for civic engagement and friendship. She also established a women’s support group.

After becoming a U.S. citizen, she held -- to the best of anyone’s knowledge -- an unbroken record of voting for Democrats. She was a lifelong Canadian (and Texan) at heart.

She joins her husband of 63 years, Waldo, and her brothers Douglas, Jack, and sister Pat. She is survived by her three sons and their families: Douglas Gullickson (Judith Streett), David Gullickson (Connie) and Grieg Gullickson (Julia); grandchildren: Emery Gullickson Richards (Neal), Clark Gullickson (Jessica), David Pfahler (Whitney), Cortney Parkhurst and Graham Gullickson; cherished nieces and nephews: John, Mark, Mary-Jane, Margaret Ann, Charles and David (Canadian Robertson Clan), Bonnie, Robert and Leslie (American Norton Clan); sisters-in-law: Juanita Norton and Norah Robertson; very special friends and magnificent caregivers. They will all miss her spunk, encouragement, generous heart, strength and gentle touch.

A memorial service will be held at Memorial Drive Presbyterian Church on Friday, December 4 at 2:00. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Heifer International, the Kimbell Art Museum of Ft. Worth or the Museum of Fine Arts Houston.