After a 1976 divorce, Betty Jane McClellan moved with her four children to a 1-acre plot surrounded by farmland in western Greene County, and threw herself into the role of single mother.

"She went to every band function, chorus function, play we were in," one of her three daughters, Shelly James of Oakdale, recalled yesterday. She supported the family by working at the local stockyards, as did the man who became her second husband, and lived in a remote mobile home in Richhill Township.

State police said someone broke into the isolated residence around 9:40 p.m. Sunday and killed the 70-year-old Mrs. McClellan. Her husband, Jacob McClellan, 67, was wounded in the home invasion.

Police yesterday were seeking at least two suspects and a white Ford Econoline van, possibly a late 1980s model with windows in the side and rear doors.

One suspect tentatively was described as white, in his mid 40s, 5 feet 6 to 5 feet 9, with a medium build, short brown hair and a light mustache, wearing camouflage pants and a long-sleeved camouflage shirt. Police had no description of the second suspect, the driver.

Mrs. McClellan was pronounced dead at the scene, and her husband was transported to a Pittsburgh-area hospital. No information on his condition was available, but Ms. James said he managed to call 911 for help.

Police didn't say how the couple were attacked, but family members said Mrs. McClelland had been shot.

Blood was visible yesterday on the door of the couple's mobile home at 487 Stringtown Road, a place so remote that there are no neighbors within sight. In that respect, little had changed since Mrs. McClellan and her children moved there more than 30 years ago.

"You had cows on one side and sheep on the other and pigs up on the hill," Ms. James said.

Ms. James said her mother held the family together with public assistance and, later, her job at the Pennsylvania Livestock Auction in Waynesburg.

Though money was tight, Ms. James said, her mother made sure the children had Christmas presents they picked out of Montgomery Ward catalogs. Ms. James said her mother was a band booster for about 15 years and worked on the funnel cake booth at the Jacktown Fair to support her children's school activities.

Patty Friend, whose family owns the stockyards, said Mrs. McClellan first worked in the restaurant, then the office, then returned to the restaurant as a manager, spending about 18 years at the stockyards overall. Yesterday, Mrs. McClellan was to have met a repairman there to take care of a malfunctioning refrigerator.

"She was like my right hand," Ms. Friend said.

Mrs. McClellan, who grew up on a Washington County farm, was a former deacon and member of the sewing circle at Enon Baptist Church. For a time, she also cleaned the church and put out its newsletter.

A talented seamstress, she made wedding and bridesmaid dresses for her daughters' weddings and taught the girls how to crochet, Ms. James said.

On Saturday, Mrs. McClellan hosted a 90th birthday party for her sister, Waneta Wright, at the Graysville fire hall.

"We had like 90 people there. It was wonderful," Ms. James said.

Mr. and Mrs. McClellan knew each other for many years and married about seven years ago.

"They seemed to be a very good pair and seemed to be with one another a good bit," said Mr. McClellan's sister-in-law, Sarah McClellan, who lives nearby. Sarah McClellan said her brother-in-law, who grew up in the Graysville area, has six children.

For a time, Mr. McClellan worked at the stockyards, penning animals and herding cattle onto the scales, Ms. Friend said.

He also has a tow truck and does scrap and salvage work, his sister-in-law said.

"He is a very generous person," Ms. James said. "He has always worked hard for what little he has."