Elizabeth Ruth Aardsma (1947 - 1969)

Born 11 Jul 1947 in Holland, Ottawa, Michigan, United States

Ancestors

Died 28 Nov 1969 at age 22 in State College, Centre, Pennsylvania, United States

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Biography

Betsy Aardsma is Notable.

Betsy Ruth Aardsma was born in Holland, Michigan, on 11 July 1947. She was the daughter and second of four children of Richard Aardsma and Esther Van Alsburg. She had Dutch ancestry.

Betsy graduated with honors from Holland High School. She then studied art and the English language at the University of Michigan. After graduating, she went on to study at Pennsylvania State University.

On 28 November 1969, Betsy was at the library doing some research. Between 4:45 PM and 4:55 PM, she was stabbed once by an unknown person with a knife in her left breast. She was most likely stabbed from behind, as her hands did not bear any wounds. One to two minutes after the stabbing occurred, one or two unidentified men left the scene, but not before telling a desk clerk that "somebody better help that girl." Those who were in the library gave first aid to Betsy, including mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, while a call was placed to the campus hospital at 5:01 PM. At 5:19 PM, an ambulance transported Betsy to the Health Center, where she was pronounced dead shortly after at the age of 22. Betsy's gravestone is at Pilgrim Home Cemetery in Holland, Michigan.

Betsy's murder remains unsolved and the Pennsylvania State Police is still actively seeking information about this case as of 28 April 2020.

Sources

See also:

• Wikipedia contributors. "Murder of Betsy Aardsma." Wikipedia. Accessed 4 May 2017.
• Find A Grave: Memorial #19328800