Betty J. Kelso
February 23, 1928 ~ November 6, 2006
Kelso, Betty J., 78, secretary for King Van Lines, 7passed away at 7:30 A.M., Monday, November 6, 2006 at St. Francis Hospital from Leukemia and Pneumonia. Service 2:00 P.M., Friday, November 17, Downing Lahey Mortuary East Betty was born February 23, 1928 in Meade, KS to Beulah B. (Kent) and William Claude King. She graduated from East High School in 1946. Betty received her Bachelor of Arts ~ Magna Cum Laude from Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in May 1978. She attended WSU Graduate School and received her Master of Arts in Spanish. Betty was well versed in English, Spanish and Italian. She was a supporter of KPTS Channel 8, Wichita Music Theater, Wichita Symphony Orchestra, The ZASU Pitts Film Festival in Parsons, KS, The Topeka Silent Film Festival in Topeka, Ks, The Annual Buster Keaton Celebration in Iola, KS and was also a member of the Sons of the Desert Laughing Gravy Tent of Wichita (the International Laurel and Hardy Fan Club.). Betty retired as secretary of King Van Lines and the Blood Department of the Wichita branch of the American Red Cross. Her favorite loves were her children, dogs, film and literature, which she passed on to her son, John. Survivors: children, John Kelso of Wichita, Kim Locken of Moose Jaw SK, Canada and Chris Kelso of Albuquerque, NM; sister, Patricia McClain; grandchildren, Vanessa of Saskatoon, SK, Canada, Natalie, Cassandra and Sarah, all of Moose Jaw, SK, Canada; great-grandchildren, Taylor, Madison and Isabell, all of Canada; brother-in-law, Darrel McClain of Wichita; niece, Terry Lee McClain of San Francisco, CA; daughter-in-law, Anne of Albuquerque, NM; her beloved, smooth hair Fox Terrier, Tootsie Too Kelso; her friends around the state and country. Betty will be missed by many. Memorials have been established with Music Theatre of Wichita, Century II, Wichita, KS, 67202 and Wichita Symphony, 225 W. Douglas, Wichita, KS, 67202.
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Please accept our deepest condolences for your family’s loss.
I would like to express my deepest sympathies to all. Betty will be missed. I met Betty at the Chiropractic office that I work at and it saddens me that she has passed. I will miss her a great deal. 🙁
Dear Kelso Family, Betty was a very special lady. Pleasant, with a ready smile, she will be greatly missed. We always enjoyed visits with Betty when she attend film festival events around the state of Kansas with her son John. We could count on Betty to come to book signings when Max represented his writing in the Wichita area–a familiar and friendly face in any crowd. We never met Tootsie or Tootsie Two, but knew how much Betty loved her dogs. May she rest in peace. We will always remember her fondly.
Dear Kelso Family, As fellow members of the Sons of the Desert Laughing Gravy Tent of Wichita, we want you to know that we will miss Betty’s beautiful smile and graciousness. Until yesterday, we didn’t know that Betty had worked with Gary’s dad, Leroy Cummings, at King Van Lines. Dad, too, appreciated her smile and professionalism. Our prayers are with you.
I had the honor of taking care of Betty in the hospital for last several weeks of her life. She always had a beautiful smile even when she didn’t feel very good. I send my sympathy to her family