Betty Salzgaber

Betty Loretta Hall Salzgaber went home to Jesus on Wednesday, August 7, 2019 at the age of 99.  Preceded in Death by her husband Ralph, parents Ira and Mary {Dowell} Hall, and brothers and sisters Charles, Vernon, Donald, Robert, Mildred (Taylor), Pauline (Goodwin), and Richard; she is survived by son Ralph II, granddaughters Elasha Beth and Deborah Noel, and many beloved nieces and nephews.

Betty began life as a coal miner’s daughter, born June 24, 1920 in Guernsey County Ohio.  At 16 she graduated from Buffalo High School and received a scholarship to attend Capital University, where she received her BA in Education.  A brilliant and dedicated, caring teacher, she began teaching in Guernsey County and soon came to the Columbus Public Schools, spending most of her career teaching 4th grade at Maize Elementary School in northern Columbus.

On December 22, 1946 she married Ralph Edward Salzgaber.  They raised one son, Ralph E. Salzgaber II.  A woman of deep faith and moral convictions, Betty was a life-long Lutheran, and for most of her life was a very active member of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church at 5th and Dennison Aves. in Victorian Village.

Betty was an avid gardener, and had a passion for nature, art, and history.  She created silk flower arrangements as well as ceramic art.  She loved to bird watch and collected figurines and images of cardinals.  Her collections of spoons, bells, apples and decorative plates were much admired by friends and family.  Betty had a fun and joy filled life, she loved to play Euchre, and with her lifelong friend Vertrice Skaggs went to Clown School and they became amateur Clowns performing for many charitable and civic groups.  Active in the community, she was a member and leader in many fraternal and civic organizations including the Order of the Eastern Star, Ladies Oriental Shrine, the American Business Women’s Association, Daughters of the American Revolution, the Ohio Historical Society Volunteers, and the Capital University Parents Club.

An avid historian, she researched Columbus and Ohio history, and the genealogy of her husband Ralph’s great-great grandfather Johann Christian Heyl, the first Lutheran and one of the original 16 settlers of Columbus.   She worked tirelessly to research both her husband’s family and her own.  She was able to help all of her in-laws, son, granddaughters, and Salzgaber nieces and nephews qualify by ancestry to join the Franklin County Pioneers Society, and traced her side of the family back to Pilgrims that came to America on the ship, the Antelope.

Betty was known for her outgoing nature, her gentle smile, her generosity, and her kind and compassionate spirit.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, August 24th, 2019 at 9:30 a.m. at Trinity United Methodist Church, 1581 Cambridge Blvd, at the intersection of 5th Ave in Grandview/Marble Cliff, the Rev. Rocky Riddle and the Rev. Dean M. Hunneshagen officiating. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Betty's name to the Trinity Foundation.