Betty Jean Burlingame

Betty Jean Burlingame, 76, passed away peacefully in the presence of her daughter, Karen, and the wonderful, caring staff of Meadow Wind Assisted Living Center in Casper, Wyoming.

Betty was born in Dyersville, Iowa to parents Clarence A. and Blanche A. (Dahlen) Nelson and was the fourth of five siblings. She loved to tell stories about fishing, raking clams, building rafts, and getting into general mischief "on the island" on the Mississippi River in Guttenburg, Iowa with her sisters. Betty loved academics as much as she loved playing softball and going to dances. She graduated from Guttenburg High School in 1965.

After high school, Betty worked in telecommunications. She started in an entry level position, worked her way up through management, and finally earned a position in engineering. As an engineer, Betty mapped out thousands of miles of fiber optic cable throughout the Midwest and Front Range areas of the United States. She was very proud of the work she did for the phone company and retired after 34 years of service in Denver, Colorado. After retirement, Betty decided that she had had enough of "big city" living and chose to relocate to Torrington, Wyoming.

Betty lived nearly 20 years in Torrington with her husband Bob and owned two businesses. Her equine business, The Rockn Bee Equestrienne Center, was mostly managed from her home west of town. At one time, she had a retail store on Main Street. Her other business was a service called Winatech Computer Repair. While providing Goshen County with her excellent repair skills, she earned the reputation of being a fair and honest businesswoman. After a diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease in November of 2020, and her husband's terminal cancer diagnosis in May of 2021, Betty made the difficult decision to close her businesses and relocate to Meadow Wind to get the care that they both needed and to be closer to her daughter, Karen.

Betty loved to laugh, and most people would almost always find her smiling, but it was known to avoid her if she wasn't. Much like Betty's favorite Asian cuisine, she could be very sweet, and a little bit spicy. She would rarely back down from an argument, and was never afraid to speak her mind, even if it sometimes got her into trouble. Betty loved many types of music such as hymns, folk rock, and classical music. She played a variety of instruments including the guitar, keyboard, autoharp, and if nothing else was available, she would tap out a rhythm on her knee and sing. Betty would say that her greatest achievements in life were raising her two beautiful, independent daughters, writing her book, Touched by the Spirit of the Horse, and giving loving homes to so many of her animal friends.

Betty is survived by her daughters Billie Jean Brockshus, and Karen (Trent) Davis, stepchildren, Aaron, Jason, and Christie Burlingame, grandchildren, Drew and Peyton Coulter and Ellen and Orin Davis, sisters, Judy (Nelson) Miller and Carol (Nelson) Burlingame, many nieces and nephews, and Lil Black Sligo aka "Jack" the miniature horse. She is preceded in death by her parents, Clarence and Blanche Nelson, brother, Gordon Nelson, sister, Shirley (Nelson) Streiff, and her loving, patient, and dedicated husband of 39 years, Robert (Bob) Burlingame.

Services will be held at Riverside Church of Christ in Torrington, Wyoming on Saturday, May 6, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. followed by a small luncheon.

Arrangements are under the direction of Newcomer Casper. To leave the family a special message, please select the "Share Memories" option.