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Bettler, David T.

December 25, 1942 –
 December 6, 2017

Obituary

Our loving husband and father of 4 children, David Bettler passed away suddenly & unexpectedly in the early morning hours of December 6, 2017.  He was the firstborn son to Ellen & Marcellus Bettler on Christmas day 1942. David and his younger brother, Michael grew up in a modest Houston home to devoted parents. His fun-loving mom stayed home to raise them as their dad served overseas during World War II.  When his father was back home, he and the boys joined the boy scouts & he became their Troup Leader. The boys became Eagle Scouts and through this, they were taught important life skills & lessons through the many activities provided. This fostered David’s creativity, which eventually lead him to discover his life’s’ passion as he explored the world of engineering. He graduated from Bellaire high school in 1961 and moved to Dallas to study mechanical engineering at SMU.  While there, he was a member of Delta Chi, Sigma Tau, and Pi Tau Sigma.  He also spent 2 years involved in a work-study co-op program at NASA that further fueled his passion of engineering.  He secured employment at Texas Instruments in 1964, prior to graduating from SMU in 1966 with a BS in Mechanical Engineering.  After graduation, he continued his employment with Texas Instruments and lead his team as they were commissioned to work through a partner company in Germany.  After a few years in Germany, David and his family settled in Richardson, TX in 1984, where he continued to work for TI which eventually became Raytheon.  After 30 plus years with the company, he decided to retire.  But that didn’t last long.  He went back to work for 2 more years at Continental Electronics before deciding to retire a second time.   Once again, this didn’t last long.  A former colleague presented him with an offer he couldn’t refuse, and he helped to start up MEMtronics in 2002.  A few years into his tenure with MEMtronics, David began to show signs of forgetfulness and trouble focusing.  Those closest to him feared this was the beginning of Alzheimer’s, which he had lost his father to years before.  He decided to retire for the final time in 2012. Throughout his adult life, David used every opportunity to travel as often as he could.  It always was a very important part of his life. Some of his favorite places were Europe in general, like Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy just to name a few but of course other countries like Australia & Japan made the list as well.  He was even able to enjoy some cruises to the Baltic Sea, the Mediterranean, and the Caribbean.  During the last years of his life, it became a regular part of any conversation he had. His other retirement activities included reading books on history, clipping articles from the newspaper and emailing them to everyone he knew, and spending time with family and friends.   But when travel was no longer an option for him, his favorite thing became walking the neighborhood and wherever else he could. In the last few months of his life, David physically lost his strength and ability to walk.  However, he never lost his memory of walking and in fact, his mind created new and elaborate memories of walking around the world several times over.  The stories that came from this phenomenon were fascinating, and he loved telling them. Although we are utterly heartbroken to now be without him, we believe that it was his time to go.  We take comfort in knowing that he no longer needs to be in any more facilities, as he so desperately wanted to be home.  David really is free now, to travel, fly, cruise and walk to all the places he dreamed. Until we see you again, we will miss you always. David is survived, loved, and superbly missed by his wife, Gabi; daughters Jill with husband John, Nicki with husband Ronnie, Amy with husband Chris; son Brian & long-time love Michaela; grandchildren Ashley, Brittany, Brantly, JD, Johnny, Kody and Charlotte; his brother Michael; sister-in-law’s Monika with husband Dan, Ingrid with husband Gordon; Aunt Nancy, nieces, nephews, many cousins and friends.   Memorial Services will be held:

  • Friday January 5th 2018 @ 1:00pm
  • Heights Baptist Church (chapel) 201 W. Renner Rd. Richardson, TX 75080
  • Reception to follow. Location pending at this time.  More information will be provided at time of service.
In lieu of flowers please consider making a contribution in David’s name to Friend’s Place, 1960 Nantucket Dr. Richardson, TX. 75080. This is a specialized daycare facility for individuals struggling with Alzheimer’s or other dementias; it enables them to maintain a life with dignity, meaning and purpose, while remaining as independent as possible.  They need our communities support as they are a cherished service for these individuals and their families. Arrangements are under the direction of ARIA Cremation Service and Funeral Home 19310 Preston Road Dallas, Texas 75252 214-306-6700

    Bettina
    27 Dec 2017
    9:04am

    We’re deeply sorry for the loss of Uncle David. He was a wonderful uncle to me and an all around great guy and we will miss him. Please know that you will continue to be in our thoughts and prayers. Much love, Bettina & family

    Debbie Moore
    29 Dec 2017
    2:42pm

    I was so sorry for your lose. Please know you are in my thoughts and prayers.

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"I can’t say enough about how helpful and professional Dusty Martin, the funeral director at the Aria Cremation location on NW Highway has been. From my initial call, he was kind and informative. My friend died at home while on hospice and she was picked up in about an hour after receiving the call from the hospice nurse. The person who arrived to pick her up was also very professional/respectful and allowed us to take as much time with her as we wished. When I met with Dusty the next day about arrangements, he explained the process and options available without being pushy or trying to “sell” extras. Throughout the process, he kept me informed and, for example, was careful to be certain I understood the cost of the obituary I wanted and offered some options for reducing that cost if I wished. When I stopped by for another reason and started talking about some of the problems I was having with the pictures and media I hoped to use at a memorial lunch I was planning, he not only listened patiently but offered technology advice and let me use his personal media player. I have had experience arranging cremations for four others using two other local companies, and this experience with Dusty at Aria has been by far the best one I have had."
Paula Barnes
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"My Daddy’s service and our family experience at Aria Northwest Highway was truly blessed. Funeral Director Dustin Martin is the kind of person that you would like to see on a more regular basis – but in his industry – you hope to not see him that often. That being said – THANK YOU DUSTIN for your unending kindness, compassion and friendship through the process. Meeting you and discussing Dallas History, Find A Grave and my Dad’s lifelong contributions to the great City of Dallas was simply wonderful! In memory of my dad James A. Dodd, Sr. – I want to personally thank you and let you know that you made everything better in that moment. Your calling to “Be There” is spot on. Aria has a one in a million guy in you! Bling Blinky of TEXAS Shout Out: God Bless You!!"
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