Betty L. Barnett, 97, passed away on April 6 in her home in the loving company of her family.
The daughter of Lesley M. Lyon and Beth Ripley Lyon, she was born on May 30, 1928, in Kansas City, Missouri, and was a lifelong resident of the Greater Kansas City area.
She was predeceased by her first husband, Clayton Wallace Barnett, with whom she had three children: Thomas Clayton Barnett (Carol) of Stilwell, Kansas (and former spouse Janet); Andrew Lyon Barnett (Jessica) of Marblehead, Massachusetts; and Lynn Beth Barnett (Gina) of Prairie Village, Kansas.
She was also predeceased by her second husband, Glenn Albert Haynes, and her brother, Lee Lyon.
Betty’s seven grandchildren and their spouses include Jami Barnett and Brian Gallagher (Berwyn, Pennsylvania), Jeremy and Kendra Barnett (Rochester Hills, Michigan), Nick Barnett and Ben Alton (Seattle, Washington), Amber Barnett and Michael Pigg (Salina, Colorado), Samantha and David Barnett (Arlington, Virginia), Isaac Barnett (Prairie Village, Kansas) and Alex and Angela Barnett (Lenexa, Kansas).
Betty also had nine great-grandchildren.
She graduated from Southwest High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in occupational therapy from Mills College in California in 1949.
Betty was a recognized trailblazer, working outside the home well before it became typical and working as a passionate advocate for children.
When public community pools opened in the 1960s, she was the first paid Red Cross Certified Swimming Instructor at the Fairway Pool.
Betty was a registered radiological technologist and served as director of Radiological Services at Menorah Medical Center from 1970-1975. She became the first woman sales representative of CGR Medical Corporation in 1975 and the top sales representative in the United States.
As a volunteer, she served as a board member of Menorah Medical Center, a life member of the National Council of Jewish Women and former board member, a Jackson County Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), a key founder and advisory board member of the Johnson County CASA program, and the honored recipient of the CASA/NCJW Founders Award. She was instrumental in formulating divorce/custody and supervisee visitation programs as well as The Child in Need of Care Programs.
Betty also served as the chair of the Kansas Children’s Service League’s Healthy Families Program. She was a former board member of the Kansas City Writer’s Group and two other writing groups. She was involved in Whispering Prairie Press and was a former board member of Kansas City Youth Jazz.
While in her 80s, she began writing five historic and personal novels, including “Jazz Town,” “Adam’s Needle,” “Hitchhiker,” “This Borrowed Land” and “The Lyons’ Den,” a history of her family. Online, she wrote “Beth’s Everything Blog.” A special work was her personal ethical will, which she titled “You Don’t Know Where You’re Going Until You Know Where You’ve Been,” a favorite Maya Angelou quote.
She also maintained membership in the Sierra Club and served as the former chairperson for Kansas of the National Nature Conservancy, reflecting her love of nature. She and Clayton owned a 40-acre farm on the Sac River in partnership with Eleanor and Dr. Joseph Borenstein in western Missouri which provided the opportunity for Betty to raise and board horses.
Highlights of her nine-decade life included caddying for American pro-golfer Byron Nelson (considered the greatest golfer of his time), meeting Fidel Castro while traveling in Cuba, and considering a run for Congress.
Her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren cherish her commitment to providing each individual an ideal childhood that continues to inspire and guide their lives and values.
Guided by the right thing to do, she worked to “be on the right side of history,” being ahead of her time as “a recognized force of nature” and as a champion of social justice.
A private graveside service was held on April 10, followed by an open house in the home where Betty lived from 1951 until her passing.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to CASA at casajwc.org, National Public Radio at npr.org, or to the charity of your choice.
Online condolences for the family may be left at louismemorialchapel.com.
