Olive Beaham Lansburgh

Olive was born in Kansas City, MO, to Gordon Taylor Beaham, Jr. and Florence Boyd Beaham. She loved growing up in Kansas City among her many friends, and she was passionate about horses and equestrian events. She graduated from the Barstow School and attended Smith College. At age 20, while on a European tour with the Smith College Chamber Singers, she contracted polio. Despite a dire prognosis, she recovered to live a full life with a doggedly positive attitude.

Olive debuted at the Jewel Ball in 1955. She married Purd B Wright III and raised her children Jennifer Helen Wright and Allen Purd Wright. She was a member of the Junior League and the BOTAR organization, serving as President of BOTAR in 1968. In 1971 she served on the Mayor’s Joint American Royal Arena Commission. She was also Secretary of the American Royal Horse Show, on the Board of the American Royal Association, and a Steward for the American Horse Shows Association.

Olive met her second husband, Larry Lansburgh, when he was a judge at the American Royal Horse Show. In 1975 they married and settled on his working cattle ranch in Eagle Point, Oregon. She became involved in many civic and community events in Southern Oregon, contributing 12 years on the School Board of the Eagle Point Schools, including acting as Chairman. She also served on the Boards of the Rogue Valley Medical Center, the Friends of the Fair Foundation, and The D9 Foundation, a foundation that supports students in the local school district. Olive founded the D9 Scholarship Dessert fundraiser and co-chaired the event for many years. She also chaired the committee to raise funds for the White City Community Health Center, and served as interim Editor of the Upper Rogue Independent. She and Larry shared a love for entertaining, animals and photographs. Each year, their Christmas card involved quite a bit of staging and often included their favorite pet. Olive adored her grandchildren and visited them when she could.

She recently moved to Overland Park, KS, to be near family and old friends. She is survived by her daughter Jennifer Berrigan, Michael Berrigan, son Allen Wright, Stacy Wright, and her grandchildren Margaret Dunlea Berrigan, Patrick Boyd Berrigan, Katherine Slater Berrigan, Jared Purd Wright, Trevor Henry Wright, Owen Thomas Wright, and Eric Aaron Wright.

Services will be held on April 8 at 2:00pm at St. Thomas the Apostle Church: 12251 Antioch Rd., Overland Park, KS. In lieu of flowers please consider donations to The Olive Beaham Lansburgh Memorial Volunteer Scholarship sent to Peoples Bank of Commerce, Attn.: Lisa Knox, 750 Biddle Rd., Medford, OR, 97524. Please offer condolences or share a memory at www.mcgilleystatelinechapel.com.