Featured in: December 2018

SORENSEN — Betty Louella (Heinrichs), 81; born Feb. 18, 1937, Borden, Saskatchewan, Canada; died Aug. 2, 2018, at her home near Roseburg, Ore. Surviving: husband, Neil Clifford Sorensen; son and daughter-in-law, Melvin Neil and Cindy Sorensen, Sammamish, Wash.; daughter and son-in-law, Laura Lynn and Perry Sterner, Roseburg; brother and sister-in-law, Dr. Harvey Lloyd and Jean Heinrichs, Newport Beach, Calif.; 4 grandchildren and their spouses, Erica and Scott Johnson, Coral and Michele Pompei, Mark and Leesa Sterner, and Kristin Sterner; and 3 great-grandchildren, Brielle Johnson, Lucca Pompei and Jackson Sterner. 

On Thursday, Aug. 2, 2018, Betty Louella Sorensen, beloved wife, mother, sister, grandmother and great-grandmother, passed away after a short illness at her home near Roseburg, Ore. She was 81 years old.  Betty will be lovingly remembered by her immediate family, nieces, nephew, cousins and extended family, as well as by her many dear friends. Betty was predeceased by her parents, David and Sarah Heinrichs.

Betty was born in Borden, Saskatchewan, and attended high school and college in Alberta. She married Cliff Sorensen in 1956 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan before moving to Walla Walla, Wash., where both of her children, Melvin and Laura were born. Betty and her family moved to southern California, where she completed her nursing degree. She spent many years as a registered nurse serving medical/surgical patients at Glendale Adventist Medical Center, Walla Walla General Hospital, St. Mary's Hospital (Walla Walla), St. Luke's Hospital (Bellingham, Wash.), and New England Memorial Hospital (Stoneham, Mass.).  

For many years, Betty greatly enjoyed spending time with her family at their cabin in British Columbia. Betty retired with her husband, Cliff, to Lynden, Wash., before later moving to Portland, Ore., to be near family and friends. She and Cliff moved to the Roseburg, Ore., area shortly before her death.  

In lieu of flowers, the family requests consideration of donations to the Cliff and Betty Sorensen Scholarship Fund at Walla Walla University to provide financial assistance to eligible students.