Bette Perot Death, Obituary – On January 3, 2023, Bette Perot passed away peacefully at home among the love and support of her devoted family. A memorial ceremony in Bette’s honor will take place at the Highland Park United Methodist Church on Wednesday, January 11 at three o’clock in the afternoon, and will be followed by a reception. Bette Perot was the first of her parents’ children to have a significant influence not just on Texas but also on the rest of the globe. She was born on February 24, 1929 in Texarkana, Texas, to the late Lulu May and Gabriel Ross Perot. Bette is survived by her brother-in-law Margot Perot, her nephew Ross, Jr. and his wife Sarah; her niece Nancy and her husband Rod Jones; her niece Suzanne and her husband Patrick McGee; her niece Carolyn and her husband Karl Rathjen; her niece Katherine and her husband Eric Reeves; her grandnieces and grandnephews Hill, Hunter, Sarah Catherine and Meredith Perot (and her husband Rob Garvey);
Also, Ross (and his wife Tori Her great-grandnieces Margot Mulford and Dial Mulford, as well as her great-grandnephews Wallace McGee and Ross Mulford. Her brother Henry Ross Perot and the grandniece who shared her name, Bette Rathjen, both passed away before she was born. When Bette first began working in education, she was hired by the Fort Worth Independent School District to teach American history to students in the eighth grade at Meadowbrook Junior High School. Bette was a passionate golfer who spent many pleasant hours and meaningful friendships on the greens at Northwood Country Club in Dallas and Shady Valley Golf Club in Arlington. Bette was a member of both clubs. She was a passionate gardener and birdwatcher, and she delighted in passing on her knowledge of gardening as well as her roses, peonies, and other plants to her friends and family.
Bette had the greatest sense of calm and contentment when she was outside, beholding the wonders that God had made. She looked forward to spending time with her nieces and nephews playing golf, going fishing, and going on vacation. Bette Perot was the cherished elder sister of the late Henry Ross Perot. Although she lived a life that was less public than her brother, she was a powerful and consistent force for good in her community and to all those who knew her. She took great pleasure in working with her brother and sister-in-law to brainstorm ways in which the three of them might put their good fortune to use for the benefit of the local community as well as the entire globe. During her 26 years as vice president of the Perot Foundation, she was able to improve the quality of life for a great number of people by cultivating ties with a wide variety of charitable organizations in the metroplex and beyond.
Her integrity, along with her hard-earned clarity and wisdom, made her a highly desirable candidate for leadership and board positions, such as those held by the North Texas Food Bank, the St. Phillip’s School and Community Center, the Board of Governors at Southern Methodist University, the St. Mark’s School of Texas Board of Trustees, the Saint Michaels’s School Board, the Visiting Nurses Association, and the C.C. Young Community Board. She also served on the boards of these organizations. Bette, who was also a daughter, sister, sister-in-law, friend, and extraordinary aunt, devoted her life to serving others in the Christian faith. Her devotion to God and the love she had for her family were the two most significant components of her life. She was a well-respected instructor of Adult Sunday School classes at the Highland Park United Methodist Church, where she was also an active member and served in a variety of capacities as a committee member.
Bette Perot was honored by her husband Ross and his wife Margot in 1969 when they gave the new Girl Scout camp near Athens, Texas, her name and named it “Camp Bette Perot.” The Bette Perot Elementary School in Keller, Texas, first opened its doors in the year 2004. Bette was recognized by the Girls Scouts of Northeast Texas for her lifetime of contributions with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009. The Perot Family Campus of the North Texas Food Bank was established in 2018 to honor her lifelong dedication to fighting food insecurity. “Aunt Bette’s Community Pantry” at St. Phillip’s School and Community Center opened in 2019 to celebrate her 90th birthday. Both of these initiatives were held in honor of her.