For her 100th birthday party, Betty Chatten wanted three things: pizza, wine, and lots of people.

She sported a sparkly pink hat with “100” on the front. Mayor Rod Roberson stopped by Brentwood at Elkhart Independent Living to celebrate a woman who was described as easygoing and kind.

She was born January 21, 1920 in Milford, Indiana. During World War II, Betty helped make bandages for soldiers. From 1949 to 1959, she worked for Chatten Motor Sales, which her father Merrill owned, operated, and then sold. She went to work at First National Bank (now KeyBank) and later retired from there.

In the mid-1960s, her parents, Merrill and Netta started a trust to help nonprofit organizations and also support their daughter. Betty didn’t seem to worry much about money, according to those who knew Betty late in life.

When KeyBank had events at Elcona Country Club for some of their private banking clients, Betty would be the first to arrive and sit with a drink in her hand and a big smile. “Every single time, she was there,” says Dawn Fisher, who worked for KeyBank at the time. “She liked people.”

Sean McCrindle, president/CEO of Bashor Children’s Home, remembers Betty listening to presentations at Trinity United Methodist Church and asking questions. He knew of her interest in Bashor, but not her intent to leave a legacy gift. This is Bashor’s 100th anniversary of work in Elkhart County, whose initial funding came from a legacy gift. “Legacy gifts can be a springboard for nonprofits to do things they wouldn’t otherwise be able to do,” Sean says.

Greg Turner and Andrew Asma both helped Betty when they worked at KeyBank. Greg was her investment officer and Andrew her trust officer. They would go visit her at Brentwood to talk about the portfolio that provided her monthly income.

They would sit in her apartment furnished simply with furniture from the 1970s era. Late in life, she drove a 10-year-old Ford Taurus. She would tell them about the bus trips she’d been on and they could see the magnets on her refrigerator, humble souvenirs she bought in the places she visited.

Get Inspired Via Email.

• Email

Greg remembers showing her the statements from the trusts and that she wasn’t using all the income due to her. “She barely said anything. She’d smile and nod. Say thank you,” he says.

In many of those meetings with clients, he expected pushback or critique. Betty never did that, nor did she elevate her lifestyle. In the final years of her life, the trust helped pay for additional medical care. Even lying in a hospital bed, she was still smiling.

“The one word that sums Betty up for me is ‘content.’ She was just a content person,” says Dawn.

In 2001, Betty signed paperwork with the Elkhart County Community Foundation to create the Betty Chatten Fund from the trust her parents had created. The 81-year-old established that proceeds from her estate would support ADEC, Bashor Children’s Home, and Trinity United Methodist Church following her death. Her parents had taught her about planning for the future and helping others. She had nurtured those seeds and her own investments grew. Following her death on March 22, 2022, Dave Beaverson handled her estate. He cleaned out her humble apartment, which included boxes of financial papers and a bit of whiskey. Over the last 18 months, he has directed a multi-million dollar gift from her total estate to the Community Foundation. It is one of the largest gifts in the foundation’s history.

Betty and her family had quietly amassed wealth that provided for her until she was 102 — and now it will help organizations help others.

“People like Betty who decide they’re going to do something have a really powerful impact when they follow their faith and God’s leading,” says Sean. “Betty’s contributions are going to be seeds that are planted and grow amazing programs to help provide services for kids who otherwise couldn’t access them.”

This story appeared in the 2023 Annual Report.

(Photo courtesy of WNDU-TV)