Elizabeth McMahon Obituary

Betty McMahon, age 86 of Fort Collins, formerly of Colorado Springs died August 3, 2016 in Fort Collins.

Elizabeth Ann "Betty" McMahon was born on September 25, 1929 in Bar Harbor, Maine to Marion (Faulkner) Doucette and James Arthur Doucett. She was one of five sisters, Marion, Virginia, Dorothy and baby sister Jeanne. Of those sisters she is survived by Dorothy and Jeanne.

While in New Orleans in 1949 a handsome young sailor, Richard "Dick" McMahon, jumped from the pier onto her ferry boat to meet her. They fell in love and married on February 1, 1949 with a justice of the peace and then eventually on February 20, 1950 in a formal church ceremony in Chicago, Illinois. Together they had two sons, Richard D. "Rick" McMahon and Henry A. "Bud" McMahon. Rick passed on August 23, 1981. Betty and Dick adopted Rick's children Sean A. McMahon (Lori) and Jody (McMahon) Gurrerie. Sean and Lori's children are Justin, Katy, Joshua and Brandon. Jody' children are Caterina, Amanda and Isabella. Jody has two grandchildren. Bud resides in Fort Collins with his wife Gail. They have four children, Chris (Kristin), Brandy (Paul) Nelson, Michael (Kristina) and Jeffrey. They also have eight wonderful grandchildren. Betty is also survived by numerous nephews, nieces and cousins.

Over the years, Betty and Dick also "adopted" several USAFA cadets that used their home as a retreat from the rigorous life at the "Zoo". In particular Todd Hegy and his wife Yana have kept in touch with our family and lovingly referred to Betty as Mom number two.

Betty was a licensed practical nurse and worked at Penrose and Memorial Hospitals for decades. She also did some home care nursing and became a dental assistant for Dr. Gary Banks until the end of her career. Following Dick's death in June of 2012, Betty, with the assistance of her neighbors Robin and Mark McGee and Ann and Bill Henson, lived at home in Colorado Springs until she fell and broke her hip in December of 2013. After rehab she eventually moved to Fort Collins. During that time, she was extremely well cared for at numerous Columbine Health facilities. Their staffs do an amazing job of helping residents and families of residents. A special thanks to Lauren McGuinty at Centre Rehab for her guidance and help with Betty. Also thanks to Mike and all of the other nurses and CNAs that loved her.

A memorial mass will be celebrated at 10:00 AM Saturday, August 27, 2016 at Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 2318 N. Cascade Ave. Colorado Springs CO. Interment will follow the mass at Evergreen Cemetery, 1005 Hancock Expressway Colorado Springs. Following the interment, Betty's family will host a luncheon beginning around 1:30 PM at the Patty Jewett Grill located at 900 E. Espanola St. Colorado Springs. This is the location where we celebrated Betty and Dick's 50th wedding anniversary. We hope to see you there. Bring your favorite memories to share in this farewell celebration of Betty's life.