Betty M. (Mast) Denton Parmer, of Jackson, MI, formerly of Dexter, age 90, passed away on Saturday, January 4, 2020 at Arbor Manor in Spring Arbor, Michigan. Betty was born April 25, 1929, in the second house ever built on Buena Vista St. in the Old West Side of Ann Arbor, daughter of Walter & May Anne (Kleinschmidt) Mast. She attended Bach Elementary School until she, her mom, dad and big brother Glen moved out to Webster (Cottonwood Farm) when she was about 12. She then went to a one-room schoolhouse on the corner of Webster Church Rd. and Farrell Rd. and attended Webster Church, as has four generations of her family. As she grew older she headed into town to attend Dexter High School, where she was a cheerleader and Homecoming Queen. She married Paul Denton and they had four children: Charlie, Paula, Laura and Tommy and raised them in the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area. She was the quintessential homemaker. She sewed beautiful dresses (for the girls as well as their Barbies), made great Sunday dinners, baked delicious pies, cookies, and cakes (she was an expert cake decorator), threw wonderful birthday parties, and sometimes she even made homemade noodles. She sang in the church choir and gave the neighbor ladies perms. The Denton home was the go-to spot for all the neighborhood kids.
She married Bob Parmer in 1978, and helped to raise his three daughters Deborah, Michele, and Wanda. They relocated to Upstate New York for a while, moved back to Michigan to live in Napoleon and eventually settled back home in Dexter.
Her last days were spent at Legacy Assisted Living in Jackson. She stayed very active socializing and joining in on all the available activities (bingo!) and she loved attending the weekly church services and singing along to all the good old hymns. Everyone who met her loved her and agrees that she always lit up the room with her smile and cheery disposition. She was a giver and not a taker …and a great mom and grandma.
Along with her four children and three stepchildren, she is survived by four grandchildren, Jeremy Paul Denton, Megan Mae Denton Krull, Kyler Thomas Denton-McHardy, and Paul Andrew Denton; and four step-grandchildren, Alexandra (Alex) Cosimeno, Randall (RJ) Cosimeno Jr, Jonah Ussery and Robert (Robbie) Allman. She was preceded in death by her husband, Robert “Bob” Parmer on March 31, 2018.
A memorial service will be held Wednesday, Jan.15, 2:00 pm at Cole Funeral Chapel in Chelsea, with Rev. Lynn Finkbeiner officiating. The family will receive friends from noon - 2 pm. A private burial will be at Webster Church Cemetery in Dexter. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetes Association or National Kidney Foundation.