Elizabeth "Betty" Ann (Lohr) Poletti

Elizabeth “Betty” Ann (Lohr) Poletti, 88, of Denver, Colorado was born September 15, 1929 to Leonard Dakota Lohr and Edna Mary Shaffer Lohr.   She died peacefully on July 3, 2018.  Her dearly beloved son Joey, preceded her in death in 1974; as did her parents and her sister, Mary Catherine Lohr Smith. 

Betty was born and raised in Washington, DC.  During her childhood, she enjoyed the abundance of festivities in our nation’s capital.  She remembered countless parades down Pennsylvania Avenue and the Easter egg hunts at the White House.  She spent summers at Colonial Beach in the beach home that her father built in 1929 so that his family could have time away from the city.  She often revisited fond memories of her cousins from Luray, Virginia, joining her family to spend time with her at the ‘beach place’. Betty was extraordinarily close to her parents; her mother was the sweetest person she knew and her father very capable and loving.  With her family, she worshiped and was baptized at National City Christian Church, remaining spiritual and faithful throughout her life.  She attended Thomas Jefferson High School and George Washington University.  During her senior year in college, she met her future husband Peter at a sorority event.  She graduated in 1951 with a Bachelor’s degree in social work and home economics. 

After graduation, Betty worked for the US State Department in Washington.   Betty became engaged to Peter John Poletti in June of 1953.  Just after the engagement, Betty left for Brighton, England for 6 weeks as part of the State Department delegation for an aviation conference.  There were many love letters sent back and forth during this trip. 

Betty married Peter on January 16, 1954 in Walter Reed Chapel in Washington DC.  The couple was married for 64 years and they had three children. After marriage, Betty and Peter lived in Baltimore, MD, Alamogordo, NM, and finally in 1961, settled in Littleton, CO where they built a home and raised their family.  Her family remembers a home filled with love, warmth happiness and always a kitty, maybe two.  Betty was so fond of her kitties.  The family’s most precious memories center around family meals which were always home cooked and often included family friends.  Betty was a gracious, talented and humble hostess for any event (and there were hundreds) from children’s birthday parties to outdoor barbeques to holiday dinners.  She was a wonderful gourmet cook, and loved using fresh and preserved produce from her own garden.  Some of her most cherished times were when relatives would visit from out of town.  The family home was a sanctuary.

Gardening was one of the joys of Betty’s life.   She was an avid vegetable gardener, and her family enjoyed fresh fruits and vegetables from the garden throughout the year.  Her ornamental gardens were spectacular and were the envy of the neighborhood; she loved sharing her gardens and flowers with her many dear friends, another joy of her life.  She dried flowers from her garden to make elaborate arrangements, which she gave as gifts to her family and friends.  

In 1974 Betty lost her son Joey to Leukemia.  This must have been the hardest thing she ever had to endure and there could never have been a more devoted mother to this young boy.  After treatments in Denver’s Children’s Hospital, mother and son would stop in Denver’s City Park and fish in Ferrill Lake.  She will be buried next to her beloved son in Bear Canon Cemetery, Sedalia, Colorado.

Betty was always looking out for the underdog.  She was a strong supporter of equal rights and social justice for all.  It was easy to engage her in conversation about current events and politics and she remained well informed and up to the minute until her health prohibited it.  She was an avid reader.  She belonged to numerous clubs to include of late, the Garden Club, Road Runners and Pine and Pewter.  She loved finding treasures at estate sales and decorated her home with style and beauty.  Her neighborhood ‘garage’ sales were legendary.

She is survived and forever missed by her extraordinarily devoted husband Peter, daughters Linda Poletti (J) Madden, Lisa (Matt) Emerson, and grandchildren: Genevieve and Alexandra Emerson, Joseph and Grace Madden.  Betty is also survived by her niece, Kristen Harrell Smith of Norfolk, VA, the families of all of her adored east coast cousins, and her brother-in-law George Poletti and sisters-in-law Helen Mellyn and Florence Chavez, and their families.

In lieu of flowers, please honor Betty by hugging a loved one, taking a meal to your neighbor, making a fresh flower arrangement, spending time with a child, helping a refugee family, or anything that makes your heart full.

Contributions can be made to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Rocky Mountain Chapter in memory of Elizabeth Ann Poletti and Joseph Hamilton Poletti.

Per Betty’s wishes, ‘Green’ burial arrangements are pending and she will be interred at Bear Canon Cemetery, 397 South Perry Park Road, Sedalia, CO

A Memorial Service is being held at Mile Hi Church, 9077 W. Alameda Avenue, Lakewood, at 2:00pm Friday, August 3, 2018, reception following.

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