Elizabeth "Betty" Daniels

Elizabeth "Betty" Daniels was a strong, enterprising woman who combined the best of family life and business success. She was a partner in love and life with her husband Amos. They thoroughly enjoyed each day they were given. Betty truly loved her family and made life sweet for those around her. Betty was born at a time when much courage was required of families. They battled economic depression and challenged fierce aggression that reached world proportions. The family of Nicholas and Hilda (Bultema) Bronsema were among many families who raised children under rugged conditions that strengthened their resolve and nurtured their spirits. Their family of five daughters welcomed baby Elizabeth into their lives on a blustery day in winter. On January 18, 1926, Betty was born at home in the midst of a blizzard. Her mother wrapped Betty in a blanket and placed her in front of a coal furnace to keep warm. The weather that day was somewhat of a predictor for birthdays to come. Betty always anticipated a snowstorm on her birthday, and nearly every year she was proved right. Betty enjoyed her childhood in the love and security of a caring family which grew to include six daughters and one son: Ruth, Bess, Jen, Win, Kate, Betty and John. Betty's father worked at Lakey's Foundry while her mother was busy caring for the children at home. Growing up, one of Betty's favorite activities was rollerskating. She could skate for hours up and down the sidewalks with a broom in her hands. She was actually sweeping the sidewalks as she skated! Betty was always a hard worker, but she seemed to be able to combine fun and work in each job she took. At age 15, she landed a job at Mills Ice Cream Parlor (no doubt to the envy of her friends). Then when she went to work at Lakey's Foundry in the payroll department, she met a man who would become the joy of her life. Betty met Amos Daniels when he came to pick up his paycheck one day, and the rest is history. Betty and Amos were married when she was just 17, and the two of them remained best friends for life. Throughout their years together, everyone around them could see Betty and Amos had a wonderful marriage. The young couple were quickly confronted with the reality of war when Amos was scheduled to be part of the D-Day invasion. But because their son Amos, Jr. was born, Amos was held back for a time. Then he joined his platoon in what would become a most harrowing experience for the troops. He and one other platoon member had volunteered to go on a scouting mission. Mournfully, their entire platoon was killed, and Amos and the other soldier were taken prisoner to Northern Germany. All the while, Betty wondered about his plight in those six months before the end of the war. Yet deep down she felt confident that Amos was alive. Then one day, the mailman appeared with a letter and greeted Betty with cheers, "He's alive, he's alive!" Amos had written that he was on his way home and would arrive in two weeks. He actually came home a few days early - the best surprise of Betty's life! When Amos was first home from the war, he went to work for Continental Motors and Betty stayed home with their two children. Daughter Rita was born in 1946, just two years before big changes occurred in the Daniels family. In 1948, Amos moved the family to Grand Blanc to attend barber college that included a year's apprenticeship. As for Betty - she began beauty school at the same time, and the two of them seemed destined for a shared business opportunity. It came in 1953 when the family moved to Muskegon where Amos opened a one-chair barber shop at Broadway and Sanford in Muskegon Heights: Daniels Barber Shop. Still finishing her schooling, Betty opened a beauty salon behind Amos' shop which had grown to four chairs. In 1957, the family moved to a home in Roosevelt Park. Then in the early 60s, Betty received her instructor's license and they opened up Daniels Hair Styling Academy on Broadway in Muskegon Heights. They also acquired the Institute of Hair Styling and Betty opened a new salon in Roosevelt Park. Quite rapidly, Betty and Amos expanded to 13 salons stretching from Fremont to Grand Haven. Betty was driven to success by her love of the work and the financial benefit she and Amos enjoyed. As evidence of their good fortune, Betty always drove great cars, the most memorable being a 1968 pink Cadillac. Their businesses continued to grow and were very stable enterprises by the time Betty and Amos sold them to Amos, Jr in the early 70s. After "retiring", Betty and Amos went on to own Bingo Halls and Flea Markets in West Michigan. They thrilled to travel all over the U.S., especially when it meant taking Betty's large family on road trips through the Midwest in their motor home. They also enjoyed spending time at their home on Fort Meyer 's Beach in Florida. With Betty and Amos, each day was an adventure that usually started out with Amos asking, "What are we doing today, Elvira?" ("Elvira" was their favorite song.) With the two of them, they took on the world. Together, Betty and Amos also battled an illness that was misdiagnosed for nearly a year. In 1980, doctors identified the disease and told Betty that if the cancer had not been diagnosed when it was, she might have only lived another two months. Thankfully, surgery was successful and Betty and Amos enjoyed their years together in the Glenside home that they built in the mid 80s. Sadly, it was Amos who did not recover from surgery. He and Betty had gone to Cleveland Clinic for an operation on his heart, but Amos died of complications. Betty was only able to endure such a heavy loss because of the closeness of her family. It was a great comfort for Betty to be able to take care of her great-granddaughter Paige. It was sheer joy when Paige's parents, Matt and Becky, had twins a few years later. Betty had a special relationship with her grandchildren. They all loved her and wanted to spend time with her. Especially on New Year's Eve, all the grandkids would gather at her home with their sleeping bags. Sacked out on the living room floor in front of the TV, they enjoyed Betty's famous chocolate cake and watched the ball drop at Times Square. It was wonderful to share in Betty's love and life.