Etta Kay (Frank) Bachert was born on Thursday, June 19, 1958, in Lamar, Colorado, to George and Vela (Chatham) Frank. She went to be with her Lord and Savior on Friday, June 14, 2024, in her home in Two Buttes, Colorado, surrounded by her three kids, just five days shy of her 66th birthday.

Etta was the youngest of three children. She grew up on the family farm/ranch, near where her grandparents homesteaded, about five miles north of Two Buttes Mountain, with her parents and two brothers, Jesse and David. They had milk cows, chickens, cats, dogs, and a garden that she had to help take care of before and after school.

She attended Pleasant Height school and for a while she was the only girl in her class. After that school closed, she rode the “feeder bus” to the highway and got on a big bus to attend school in Lamar and graduated from there in 1976. Her favorite classes were home economics and choir. She made many lifelong friends while there.

Her dad taught her to drive a tractor before she was old enough to attend school and she helped him out a lot over the years with driving and fixing them. She also really liked helping her mom cook and garden. During the summer she would help out on the farm or go to Camp Salvation to be a camper, and when she got old enough, she helped out as a camp cabin counselor.

She said she didn’t have much free time growing up, but when she did, she liked to go down to the creek and look for polliwogs. She had fond memories of hanging out and playing with her many cousins. She also liked going with her Aunt Lydia to visit people when she was home on deputation and listen to her mission stories.

She met the love of her life Stephen Bachert in college at Frontier School of the Bible in La Grange, Wyoming. One summer she went to visit his parents as a summer missionary and was in an accident with some of the other missionaries. Steve came to “visit his sisters who were also in the accident” and had a ring in the glove box to pop the question.

They were married on July 19, 1980, and lived in the back room of her parents’ house for a couple of months, then they moved a trailer into the yard and lived there for a couple of years. In January 1984 they moved into their current house in Two Buttes. Three children were born to this union. Simon, Rachel, and Skip.

When she did have some rare “free time” she enjoyed some hobbies like crocheting, embroidery, sewing (though most of the time she spent mending her family’s clothes), gardening, canning, taking care of her chickens and cats, and reading.

She started to be a caregiver for other people when she was a teenager. When her kids were little, she would clean houses for some of the neighbors part time. When her youngest son Skip was young, she started cleaning houses for others more full time. As she cleaned, people would start asking her to do more things, like provide personal care. The jobs that gave her the most joy was when the person would be hard to get along with. Others would ask her how she could stand that person. She would reply that she never had any problem with them because they had a lot of the same traits as her dad did. Some people she helped for only a short time and others she helped for many years. It is impossible to count the number of people she helped throughout her life.

Another job she enjoyed was being a librarian. She started it when one of the people she was caring for retired and asked her if she wanted to step into the position. Especially since her kids seemed to be down at the library all the time anyway! She agreed and had a good time coming up with different ideas for story time.

Etta made a decision to follow Jesus when she was about 5 years old at a Neighborhood Bible time her church hosted. Shortly before her 7th birthday a schoolmate died in a flood after getting saved at that same church. After that Etta wanted to make sure that everyone knew her Savior Jesus. She was not in your face about it, but she lived as an example instead. While living in Two Buttes, when her kids were growing up, for the other neighborhood kids she hosted Child Evangelism Fellowship Good News Clubs in her home during the school year, during the summer she hosted 5-Day clubs, and offered to drive the kids to Vacation Bible School at Star Community Church where she attended.

She was very dedicated to her family and friends. She was usually more concerned with how someone else was doing and wanted to help them however she could. She fought hard for a long time and was a great encouragement to many. Even the ones who just met her said they could tell how strong and stubborn she was. Many of her friends said they could see that smile of hers and it would lift their spirit.

Etta is survived by two sons, Simon of Humble, Texas, and Skip of Goodland, Kansas; daughter, Rachel of Two Buttes, Colorado; brothers, Jesse (Doris) Frank of Glasgow, Montana, and David (Kathleen) Frank of Springfield, Colorado, brothers-in-laws, Richard “Dick” (Kathy) Bachert of Bloomfield, New Mexico, Timothy “Tim” Bachert of Gallup, New Mexico, and David (Summer) Bachert of Farmington, New Mexico, sister-in-laws, Beth (Larry) Palmer of Elk Grove Village, Illinois, Barbara “Barb” (Ed) Islas of Apache Junction, Arizona, Susan “Sue” (Frank) Porter of Fredericksburg, Virginia, Karen (Stan) Gingrich of Larkspur, Colorado, Margaret “Peggy” Stewart of Raytown, Missouri, and Sharon “Joy” LoPiccolo of Garden City, Michigan; along with an army of nieces and nephews, abundance of cousins, and countless friends.

She was proceeded in death by her husband, Stephen “Steve”; parents, George and Vela Frank; in-laws, Earl and Dorothe Bachert; brother-in-law, James Bachert; nieces, Tirzah Palmer, Lydia Hernandez, and Crista Crowder; and nephew, Jeremy Porter

*All obituaries are submitted by family and friends of the deceased.

Please enter the amount you would like to give and click continue.