Today I want to honor my wife, Betty Sue Perry, the love of my life. Betty was the center of our family, a devoted mother, a faithful partner, and a woman whose heart was always rooted in the people she loved most. She loved me, our children, Kelly Lynn and Timothy Richard, and the city of Fresno, California, where her story began and where so much of her life was lived.

Betty was born on October 10, 1947, to Lorene and Herman Cunningham in Fresno, California. She grew up playing at Romain Playground and later graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1966. When I first came to know her, she was working at Rhodes Department Store. Even then, she had that quiet strength and warmth that drew people to her.

I was a career Navy man, and I met Betty in June of 1971 at my cousin's apartment complex, where a group of sailors from NAS Lemoore were having a pool party. Betty was sitting alone on the stairs, looking a little lonely, so I introduced myself. One thing led to another, and before long we knew we had found something special. On March 4, 1972, we were married, and from that day on, we built a life together that lasted 54 wonderful years.

That life together was not always easy, but Betty carried it with grace. Just a few months after we were married, I had to deploy in August of 1972, and Betty stayed behind with her parents. During that time, she learned she was pregnant with our first child, Kelly Lynn, who was born on May 30, 1973. Later, when I was on shore duty at NAS Moffett Field, we welcomed our second child, Timothy Richard. Betty was a Navy wife for 20 years, and that meant enduring long separations, multiple moves, and many months at a time with me away on ships. Through it all, she was a fantastic homemaker and a loving mother. No matter where the Navy sent us along the California coast, Betty turned each place into a true home for our family.

When I retired from the Navy in 1990, we moved back to Fresno, the place Betty had always loved. There, Kelly and Timothy graduated from Bullard High School, and I joined the U.S. Postal Service. We bought a house around the corner from her parents and cared for them in their later years. That was who Betty was—someone who loved deeply, gave generously, and never turned away from family. For 54 years, she was my partner, my comfort, and my greatest blessing. I miss her more than words can say. But I will always be grateful for the life we shared, the family we raised, and the love she gave so freely. Betty Sue Perry will always be remembered with love, and she will always remain in my heart. And while we grieve her absence here, I find comfort in the promises of our Lord Jesus Christ, trusting that she is now at peace in God's presence. Jesus said in John 14, "Let not your heart be troubled… In my Father's house are many mansions… I go to prepare a place for you." Those words give me hope today. I believe that by God's grace, and through faith in Christ, we will see Betty again. Until then, we thank the Lord for her life, for her love, and for the blessing she was to all of us.