Betty L Gregory

Betty Gregory, 87, longtime resident of Edmond and Oklahoma City died Wednesday, May 9, 2012. Betty was born Feb. 7, 1925 near the Salt Fork River in Woods County, OK to Harry Dwight and Lela Louise Bond Rose. Betty was raised on the farm homesteaded by her Grandfather Bond and attended schools in Alva, OK and Hardtner, KS before graduating from high school in Capron, OK. Betty began piano lessons at an early age and played throughout her life. She was also active in 4-H from the age of 9 through her college years. Betty always attended the Oklahoma State Fair in Oklahoma City and 4-H Round-Up in Stillwater. She won numerous awards and contests in 4-H involving sewing, baking, nutrition and meat judging. Twice Betty attended the American Royal in Kansas City, KS and twice attended the National 4-H Congress in Chicago, IL winning 3rd place on the Meat Identification Team and 1st place with a Dairy Foods Demonstration. Betty was also active in numerous activities in high school including girl’s basketball, Honor Society, the Glee Club and was Valedictorian of the Capron Senior Class of 1942. Upon high school graduation, Betty was selected as Outstanding female in the NW District of OK by Henry G. Bennett, Oklahoma A&M President, and was awarded a scholarship to attend Oklahoma A&M in Stillwater. The scholarship included all tuition and fees as well as lodging for one year – something that she or her family could not have afforded. At A&M, Betty lived in Willard and Murray Halls where she met many life-long friends and began studies to become a Hospital Dietitian. But without a scholarship after the first year of college and with WWII on-going, Betty returned home and taught 3rd & 4th grade at Hardtner, KS. After a year of teaching, Betty returned to A&M and pledged Alpha Delta Pi sorority where she quickly became involved in numerous activities, noting that she especially liked the ‘dance hours’ with the fraternities. Betty maintained a life-long involvement in Alpha Omicron Chapter serving as State Membership Chairman for Alpha Delta Pi’s Alumni Group as well as President of the Chapter Corporation Board. She was also honored as Outstanding Alpha Delta Pi in the Region in 1973. Her involvement in ADPi sorority resulted in life-long friends and memories, including sharing the legacy with her daughter Barbara (1976) and granddaughters Bond (2006) and Jamie (2008) and a multitude of friends she made through the years. Also while at Oklahoma A&M, Betty met a handsome young man named Ed Gregory who had returned to school after serving in WWII. Betty was introduced to Ed by one of her sorority sisters at the Y-Hut on campus in the fall of 1945. They started dating and it was not too long until they were making plans for the future. Betty had an internship at Ohio State University to become a Hospital Dietitian, but decided to wait until Ed finished his M.S. So Betty returned to home in Clovis, NM and taught 7th & 8th grades and girl’s basketball for one year. Ed and Betty were married June 1, 1947 in Alva, OK. Betty and Ed raised three children and spent 57 wonderful years together until Ed’s passing in 2004. Ed’s career with the OSU Extension Service took them to Enid, Chickasha, & Duncan. Betty was always a proud wife, mother and homemaker often making many of the clothes for the family and always cooking and baking. In 1968 the family moved to Oklahoma City and soon after Betty began teaching Home Economics at Putnam City High School which she called “Putnam City-the Original”. In addition to her regular cooking and clothing classes, she took great pride in developing and teaching the first Home Ec classes for boys. After retirement from teaching in 1979, Betty and Ed moved to Edmond to be closer to grandchildren. About this time, and with the help of her dear friend Nona Thompson, Betty embarked upon what became a great passion for the rest of her life – genealogy. She and Ed made numerous trips to TX, MO, IL, MI, PA, NY and MA in search of grave stones, cemetery records, and the like – anything to track down their descendants. The search also included several trips to Salt Lake City to help document the family lineage back to the American Civil War, the American Revolution, and even the Mayflower colony. Betty was a Charter member of the New Covenant Christian Church and faithfully attended until her health no longer allowed her to do so. Betty was also an active and proud member of the Oklahoma State University Alumni Association, Alpha Delta Pi sorority, Oklahoma Society of Mayflower Descendants, Capron School Alumni Association, Rose City Area Historical Society, Charter member of the Oklahoma Prairies Chapter of the Daughters of American Revolution, Oklahoma Genealogy Society, First Families of the Twin Territories, and the Christian Women’s Fellowship. While Betty was active in various civic organizations, she never seemed to miss any athletic event or recital in which one of her children or grandchildren were involved. Betty and Ed also owned OSU season football, basketball, baseball, and wrestling tickets since the 1960’s. She continued to attend basketball games in Gallagher-Iba until a few years ago. Thru their retirement years, Betty & Ed traveled with OSU Posse Club to many sporting events, Big 8 and Big 12 Championships, bowl games, College World Series, and Final Four appearances. Win or lose, they were orange wearing, die-hard Cowboy fans. Betty was predeceased by beloved husband Ed and her Father and Mother. She is survived by her son Don and his wife Peg of Henderson, NV; son Mark and his wife Montie of Stillwater; daughter Barbara Andrews and her husband Roger of Edmond; brother Dwight Rose and his wife Darlene; granddaughters Bond and Jamie Andrews of Edmond and Carly Mayes Jones and her husband Robert of Houston, TX; cousin Sonja Pellow of Edmond, OK, and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews from several states. Betty loved and was devoted to the Lord and her family, OSU, and her passion for genealogy. Memorial services will be held Tuesday, May 15, 2012 at 1 p.m. at the New Covenant Christian Church, 12000 N. Rockwell Ave., Oklahoma City, OK with Rev. Tim Pool officiating. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the OSU Foundation – Alpha Delta Pi Scholarship Fund #20-79050, P.O. Box 1749, Stillwater, OK 74076.