Betty Jean Williams passed away sleeping early Saturday, November 9, 2024, in Augusta, KS. Family will receive friends Monday, November 25, 2024, from 6 p.m. until 8 p.m. Funeral service will be Tuesday, November 26, 2024, at 2 p.m. Burial will be at Earnest Chapel Cemetery.
She was ‘Sam’. Momma. Granny Betty. Aunt Betty. Betty Jean. Sister. Friend.
Betty was born on the first Independence Day after World War II in Oakman, Alabama – the fifth of Grady & Annie (Grace) Brown’s eleven children. She grew up walking to church twice on Sunday and every Wednesday, helping her mom herd all the kids as they strolled the long country roads to Earnest Chapel Church of Christ. She loved church and loved going with big brother Jim to the Southern Revivals as they passed through town, listening to fire & brimstone while singing old Gospel hymns… acapella… as the Lord intended. Betty loved the Lord.
She graduated from Oakman High and went to work as a telephone operator in Alexander City. While in Jasper visiting her older sister Shelby, she met Joe who was home on a break from the Air Force. They were married 64 years. She had a full and busy life following Joe as the Air Force sent them to places she never thought she’d go – Wyoming, California, back to Alabama while Joe served a year duty tour in Vietnam, Montana, Arkansas, Germany, Maine, and Kansas, then circling back to Alabama where they lived near Huntsville for 35 years.
As the boys grew older, Betty’s jobs included the civil service and a long stint at JC Penney’s. But, following Joe meant Betty’s main job was raising their three boys, Joey (born in California), Ronald (Alabama), and Stephen (Germany). She saw the Rocky Mountains, the Pacific Ocean, Yellowstone, the Berlin Wall (before it came down), Venice, Trier, Amsterdam, Verdun, New England, Canada, and the Great Plains of Montana and Kansas. Bama was always ‘home’.
Her eight grandchildren were Betty’s joy. She was the perfect babysitter – overly protective, vigilant, and loving. Plus she came with snow globes, Beanie Babies, and matching outfits. As her memories faded, she was still capable of a good laugh, still loved a strawberry milkshake and a cheeseburger with fries, and she still loved Joe. As all the rest of us faded in her mind, she lit up when he walked into the room offering a cup of coffee or a bite to eat. His steady presence gave her company and companionship these last few years. He was a good husband.
Betty fell asleep in Kansas and awoke in heaven with Annie and Grady, her sister Shelby, and her brothers Jim, Herman, Robert, David, and Roger. She is survived by her husband, Joe Sr.; her son Joe (Kristey) and children Sydney, Sadie, Holt, & Halle; son Ronald (Cindy) and children Brigid & Amity, and son Stephen (Leslie) and children Bailey & Dylan; her sister Lisa, and her brothers Chester, Gary, and Phillip, and twenty or so beloved nieces & nephews.
She was a great friend, a sweet aunt, a wonderful sister, a loving mom and grandmother, and a faithful wife. She lived a good life. She will be missed…
