Betty Jo Anne (Sikinow) Cunningham passed away peacefully in the early morning hours of December 23, 2022 in Fairmont, WV.  Born in a leap year on February 29, 1936, Betty had only 21 actual birthdays in her lifetime though she was 86 years old.  Betty was known to her family as "Pootsie."  She was preceded in death by her husband of almost 50 years, Richard Rex, and her parents, Vera L. (Higginbotham) and George J. Sikinow.  Surviving are her three children Richanne (Michael) Mankey of Defiance, OH; David (Barbara) of Roscoe, IL; and Mark (Sue) of Mint Hill, NC.  Her American Field Service (AFS) exchange student daughter, Christine Jones (William) Coates of Whakatane, New Zealand also survives.  Grandchildren and step-grandchildren include Erica Mankey (Rob) DeMuch and their two children Dylan and Ryder; Devon Cunningham and John Cunningham.  The New Zealand grandchildren are Natalie, Hemi (Nikki), and Julia (Kiri) Kihi-Coates and six great-granddaughters.  Surviving cousins include Jody Alkire Johnston (Delmont, PA), Judy Alkire McGuire (Green Valley, AZ), Jacque Alkire (Kenneth) Boff (Sarasota, FL); Lee Ann Southern (Mike) Romeo (Shinnston, WV), and Sherry Ann Southern Hillman (Sumrall, MS); Ronald (Mark Bentley) Frye (Freeport, ME); and Patricia Campbell Marcet (Florida).  While not family in the biological sense, Tammy Myers was like a family member as she selflessly cared for Vera Sikinow until her death, and was a constant friend and helper to Betty.

Betty graduated from Monongah High School in 1954 and met Richard Cunningham while studying at Fairmont State College.  They married on August 22, 1958.  After graduating from college in 1958 she began her decades-long teaching career at Upper Sandusky High School where she taught Home Economics.  In 1968 the family relocated to Tiffin, Ohio where "Mrs. C.," as she was known, continued her career at Tiffin Columbian High School, first teaching Home Economics, and later English.  She retired from teaching in 1998.  "Mrs. C." loved the ongoing contact with students and former students – she had a keen memory for their names and circumstances.  "Mrs. C." never met a stranger!

Betty and Rich planned a move to her late-childhood home near Farmington, West Virginia in 2007; she completed that move after Rich's death in 2008.  In 2022 she relocated to Harmony at White Oaks in Bridgeport, WV where she met and enjoyed being with new friends including Betty Sue, Dorothy, Elaine, Tom and many others.  Neighbors Carolyn Boyce and Bobby Jacobin were also very helpful to Betty; her family appreciates the care and concern they and so many others had for her.

A memorial service will be held at Domico Funeral Home in Fairmont, WV on Saturday, March 18, 2023 at 11:00 AM officiated by a friend of the family, Mose Cannon.  Following the service, her ashes will be interred at Shinnston Memorial Cemetery next to her beloved grandmother, Margaret Shaefer Higginbotham and her aunt, Margie Alkire.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the American Cancer Society or the American Heart Association.

Online obituary available at:  domicofh.com