Betty Lou Wright McKinney passed away peacefully surrounded by family on Friday, December 20th, 2019. She was born in Greenwood, Arkansas, on September 10th, 1926 to Orin and Laura Beam Wright. Betty graduated from Greenwood High School in 1944 where she was a charter member of the Beta Club Honor Society.
As a young woman, she moved to California to work in the Navy Shipyards in Oakland as a clerk. Back in Greenwood in the spring of 1946, she met O.B. McKinney, and after a brief courtship, they married on April 25th, 1946. They were married for 73 years. They had five children, nine grandchildren, and thirteen great-grandchildren.
Betty devoted her life to her family and to creating a home regardless of where or how often they moved during O.B.’s military career. She settled and resettled her family over ten times in the United States, the Azores, and Morocco, eventually leading her family back to Greenwood in 1967. Her strength was never more evident than in 1968 when she dealt with the destruction of her home in the 1968 tornado while having her oldest son serving in the highlands of Vietnam.
Betty was active in the community as a member and officer of the VFW Auxiliary and as an election official for numerous local and national elections. She was a devoted Christian who attended her local Baptist churches without fail until she was no longer able to leave her home.
O.B. and Betty were particularly proud of the lasting legacy of faithful marriage they handed down to their family. Among the five children and the nine grandchildren, there are over 200 years of marriage and counting
O.B. and Betty instilled the values of service and sacrifice in their children and grandchildren as well. Their four sons have 58 years of military service among them with three of the four serving in Vietnam and Desert Storm. Two grandsons served in Iraq/Afghanistan.
Betty is survived by her loving husband O.B. McKinney, and her family:
Joe and Elaine (Giro) McKinney of Rogers, Arkansas, and their children Ben and Audra (McMullin) McKinney with their sons Aiden and Ian; Sarah Morgan and her sons Miles and Maddox.
Robert and Susan (Snyder) McKinney of Greenwood, Arkansas, and their children James of Bentonville, Arkansas; Kathleen of Columbia, Missouri.
Richard and Sandra (Gann) McKinney of Greenwood, and their children John and Rachel (Berger) McKinney of Greenwood and their sons Aric and Shane; Elizabeth (McKinney) and Ron Cribbs of Tuttle, Oklahoma, and their children Devin, Ronnie, and Grace.
Dale and Becky (Beshears) McKinney of Greenwood, and their children Laura McKinney Pearson of Greenwood and her daughter Audrey; Josh and Roxanne (LaRue) McKinney of Prairie Grove, Arkansas, and their children Maggie and Maxton.
Susan (McKinney) and Phil Ertel, and their daughter Margaret Ann of St. George, Utah.
Funeral service will be 10:00 a.m. Thursday, December 26 at Westwood Baptist Church in Greenwood with interment at Clarks Chapel under the direction of McConnell Funeral Home in Greenwood, Arkansas. Viewing will be Monday, 10:00 am to 8:00 p.m. at the funeral home, where the family will visit with friends from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Pallbearers will be John McKinney, Ben McKinney, Sarah McKinney Morgan, Elizabeth McKinney Cribbs, Laura McKinney Pearson, Joshua McKinney, James McKinney, Margaret Ann McKinney Ertel and Kathleen McKinney.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Clarks Chapel Cemetery c/o P.O. 1121, Greenwood, AR 72936.
