Betty Jean Slattum
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Betty Jean Slattum, or "BJ", "Far Mor" or "Mor Mor", passed away suddenly on July 28, 2021. Born on September 28, 1934, she was the daughter of Clifford and Esther Condray and had been married to her husband, Jerry Slattum for more than 55 years, stubbornly outlasting them all. She is survived by two brothers, Don and Gary Condray, and was preceded in death by a third, Wayne Condray. She had 6 children - Kevin, Sven (deceased), Erik, Karl, Nils and Kirstin; and 15 grandchildren - Anneliese, Kari, Erik, Nick, Matt, Bjorn, Gretchen, Anja, Espen, Anders, Jonas, Ingrid, Annika, Britt, and Finn.
She was born in Kingsburg, CA and eventually attended Pacific Lutheran College where she met Jerry. She often spoke of happy times in college with many friends and great laughs. She and Jerry ultimately settled down in Newbury Park, where he worked at CLU and she built the family. She loved to sew, specializing in matching suits for her boys and dresses with bonnets for her and her daughter. Her passion would eventually lead to making treasured quilts for each of her grandchildren (the final one even being worked on the day she passed). Although she would take great pride in saying that she never drank alcohol or coffee, she enjoyed her daily iced-blended mocha with her beloved "coffee group" friends. She loved animals and at various times mothered dogs, chickens, cats, and anything making its home on their property. Her house was filled with art and antiques she acquired on trips around the world. While she cherished these things, her family were her greatest treasures.
A service for BJ will be held at 5:30 pm, August 6 at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, 1 W. Avenida de Los Arboles in Thousand Oaks, where she was an active member for 50+ years. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking donations be directed to Holy Trinity Lutheran Church.