She was born on December 8, 1933 in Portsmouth, Virginia the daughter of Walter Thomas and Virginia Mae (Watley) Tyler. She graduated from Madison College in 1954 with a Bachelor of Music Education and Piano. She was a member of Alpha Sigma Alpha, the school newspaper The Breeze, the German Club, Glee Club, the May Court and the Young Women’s Christian Association.
Billie met John Robert Owen during his time at the Naval Academy and they were married in 1960 at Portsmouth, Virginia. They moved to Kansas City where she had been active in many aspects of the community. She was passionate about music as well as all animals. She brought her piano from Virginia to Kansas City when John said she could keep her piano or her horse. She chose the piano, and he joined the Saddle and Sirloin Club so she could be around horses. She taught music prior to their marriage and continued to teach as a substitute teacher at the Sunset Hill School. She was a member of Country Club United Methodist Church and participated in the choral group, the bell choir, and The Crusaders class. She was an avid runner, tennis player and a pioneer of women’s physical fitness. She ran multiple 5K races, 10K races and a full marathon in her 40s. She loved Loose Park and ran around it for years with her running friends.
Her passion for tennis led her to found KATO - Kansas City Association of Tennis Officials and to serve on the USTA National Officials Committee. She was a tennis official with the United States Tennis Association (including 10 years as a tennis official at the US Open in New York, and multiple other professional tournaments), the NCAA, World Team Tennis and the Davis Cup. She received numerous awards, was inducted into the USTA Heart of America Hall of Fame in 2005 and named the USTA Missouri Valley Heart of America Outstanding Official in 2010. Her collegiate tennis officiating included the NAIA Tennis Championships for 15 years, the Big 8 Tennis Championships,the Big 12 Conference Championships for 5 years, and head official for the NCAA Division 2 National Championship for over 9 years.
She was a patron of the arts, loving all theater and music, supporting the KC Symphony, KC Repertory Theater, Starlight Theater, and The Unicorn Theater, and served as a tour guide to showcase her love of Kansas City. She supported many activities that her daughters were involved in, including being a Brownie Troop leader, head timer for the Carriage Club summer swim team, chauffeur in her bright blue Volkswagen Bug, and supplier of the best after-school snacks.
She was both adventurous and generous, traveling the globe with her husband and making many lifelong friends. Her motto was that she never met a stranger and loved talking to new and old friends. She was a very loyal friend and had many lifelong friendships, including those in her beloved Bridge Club.
She was preceded in death by her husband, John Robert Owen, 89 on March 21, 2019, her sister Leona Tyler Snyder and her parents, Walter and Virginia Tyler. She is survived by her daughters, Sarah Owen, Susan Owen, Sandra Price and husband, David, grandchildren, Joseph Owen Perks, Sydney Tyler Perks, Charles Walter Perks and Judson Tyler Price.
A Celebration of Life service is planned for June 3, 2023 at Noon at the County Club United Methodist Church, 400 W. 57th Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64113 with a celebration visitation taking place one hour prior to the service. Her ashes will be placed with her husband at Mt. Moriah Cemetery in the Faith II Mausoleum following services. Family and friends are invited to continue with the celebration with a catered reception at Mt. Moriah, Newcomer & Freeman Funeral Home, 10507 Holmes Rd., Kansas City, Missouri immediately following the committal of her ashes.
In lieu of flowers, donations may made to the American Stroke Foundation at https://americanstroke.org/donate/
