Betsy (Leep) Henry

Bets Henry died at home after a long illness— and it’s impossible to imagine the world without her brilliant smile and brave spirit.

 The youngest of 6 kids, Bets was born moving 100 mph, tagging along after her older siblings and a menagerie of family pets. When she’d jump into the car with her cool teenage brothers, they made her and her sister Nancy duck down in the back seat if they passed someone. Then she got a horse and set out on her own. You always knew Bets was at the movies when you saw Peewee hitched up outside the theater. 

 A team player from the start, she was elected student body president at Myrtle Point High and won a volleyball scholarship to Mount Hood Community College. The adventurer then headed off on a 2-month trip to New Zealand with Nancy. 

 After meeting a Wallowa County cowboy on a family hunting trip, Bets married and moved to eastern Oregon. She thrived amid the mountains, horses and tight-knit community–working at hunting camps and Red’s Horse Ranch, where she belted out Christmas carols while shoveling snow, and on staff at Enterprise Animal Hospital. No matter where she was employed, she outworked everyone around her. 

 One of her great passions was volunteering every summer for the Chief Joseph Days Rodeo, where she did everything from parade-rider to cook and greeter in the Hospitality Room. She eventually served as Director, was named volunteer of the year, and received the Justin Committee Person of the Year award. 

 While she knew everybody in Joseph and Enterprise, her social circle extended around the world. She was so connected to her many MySpace friends that she was one of that platform’s loyal last subscribers.

 In 2014, she and her cats, the “T-Twins,” returned to Myrtle Point to help care for her dad. She convinced her brother to load several huge rocks into the U-Haul, taking a piece of the land she loved so much with her. She decorated her new house with those rocks, and images of cowgirls, cowboy boots and sunflowers. 

 Soon enough, customers at Hometown Hardware and golfers at the Coquille Elks Club were met with her teasing humor and infectious giggle–Bets had quickly become part of the community again. She logged hundreds of miles walking around the local track listening to novels on CD, and was the glue in every family reunion and Thanksgiving, assigning the potlucks and running the cornhole games.

 It’s so easy to say that someone “lit up a room,” but Bets absolutely illuminated it. She was stubborn, independent, and keenly insightful—slicing to the truth of a situation, shaking her head and saying, “Jiminy!” There was nothing more fun than sitting in the sun with Bets and commenting on the world going by.

 Thank you for shining your light and standing up for what matters most, Bets. We are all better for having been in your presence and will love you forever. 

 She was preceded in death by her father, Rolland Leep; mother, Margery Pullen; and brother Perry Roper. She is survived by her partner, Ron Robinson; stepmother, Gerry Leep; siblings Mickey Dupuis, John (Bruce) Roper, Nancy Jensen, Steve Leep and their families; and stepbrothers and stepsister Greg Wilberger, Gale Wilberger, Ginger Lorence, and their families. She leaves many nephews and nieces and more friends than could ever be counted. 

 Contributions in Bets’ memory may be made in her name to the “Christmas Basket Fund,” Coquille Valley Elks, PO Box 428, Coquille, OR 97423 or to Chief Joseph Days, 401 N Main Street Joseph, OR 97846.

 A celebration of Bets’ life will take place on June 18, 2022 at 1 p.m. at the Coquille Valley Elks Lodge, 54928 Maple Heights Road, Coquille, OR 97423.

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