Betty Jean Tate

Betty Jean (Turner) Tate passed peacefully into the arms of Jesus on October 9, 2026, in New Braunfels, Texas. Betty was born on April 18, 1928, to John F. and Ella (Davenport) Turner, in Kent County Texas. Her family moved by wagon from Kent County to Terry County, Texas in 1930.

Betty attended the Challis and Meadow public schools. She was the 1945 class valedictorian of Meadow High School. She attended Wayland Baptist College in Plainview and worked for a few years as an administrative assistant for Service Pipeline in Lubbock. Betty also served as the church librarian for Trinity Baptist Church in Lubbock, and as the Media Center Director for the Lubbock Baptist Association. She was a member of the First Baptist Church in Lubbock.

She married Sammy L. Tate on June 8, 1952, in Lubbock. They were married for 44 years, until Sammy’s death in 1996. She is also preceded in death by her parents, four brothers and a sister. She is survived by a son, Jimmy (Teresa) of Canyon Lake, Texas; daughter, Judy of Granbury, Texas; two grandchildren, Lindsey Gonzalez (Tony) of Phoenix, Arizona and Paul Tate (Nancy) of Kyle, Texas; five great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.

A graveside service and burial will be at Lubbock’s Resthaven Cemetery on Friday, October 16, 2026 at 2pm.

Memorials can be made to a charity of your choice.