Elizabeth Wattles

(Florence) Elizabeth Anderson Wattles, died on Wednesday, August tenth, at age 98. She was a long time resident of Endicott, New York, and the daughter of the first mayor of the village, Dr. William T. Anderson, D.D.S. and Flossie E. Woods Anderson. Mrs. Wattles graduated from Elmira College in 1941, a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society. She is pre-deceased by her husband of 56 years, Edwin A. Wattles, and one daughter, Alida D. Wattles Hilke. She is survived by her two married sons and their wives, Thomas W. and Claudia R. Wattles, and the Reverend Stuart C. and Jennifer B. Wattles; and six grandchildren: Stephen P. Wattles, David W. Wattles, Jeremy T. Wattles, John E. Hilke, Theodore H. Hilke, and William T. Hilke, as well as eight great-grandchildren. Mrs. Wattles, affectionately known as Betty, was a teacher, most recently of social studies at the Jennie F. Snapp Jr. High School from 1966 until her retirement in 1974. She was a loyal member of First Presbyterian Church, Endicott, where she taught an adult bible class for many years. Known and respected for her deep and constant faith, she served as a deacon, and as one of the first women ordained an elder of her church.In retirement, she and her husband traveled widely, often with her beloved sister Margaret and husband, Robert S. Cline. In 1983, the four went around the world visiting Japan, the Peoples’ Republic of China, Macao, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, India, Greece, Turkey, and Israel. After the destruction of the Berlin Wall (1989) and the establishment of the Russian Federation (1991), she was one of the first to enter the former Soviet Union in 1992. Betty moved to Clinton, New York in 2006 to be nearer her two sons, and later, she re-located to the Masonic Care Community in Utica. Although hampered by severely declining vision and problems brought on by advanced years, she continued to be active and alert well into her nineties. Betty was an energetic and enthusiastic woman, fair-minded, gracious, and generous.

Calling hours are scheduled for Saturday, August 27, from 3-5 p.m. at the Allen Funeral Memorial Home, 511-513 East Main Street, Endicott. A memorial service will be held on Sunday, August 28, at 4 p.m., in the chapel of First Presbyterian Church, 29 Grant Avenue, Endicott, with the Reverend Janice P. Devine officiating. Memorial donations may be made to First Presbyterian Church of Endicott, or the Special Olympics.