Betty Marie Lehr

January 16, 1941 - July 16,2026

A graveside service for Betty will be held on Friday, July 24, 2026, at 10:00 AM at the Dewey Cemetery. Online condolences may be left at www.honoringmemoriesbartlesville.com. Arrangements are under the direction of Arnold Moore & Neekamp Funeral Home and Cremation Service.

Hello, everyone. Thank you all for being here today. My name is Jodi, and I am Betty’s daughter. Mom was one of the most wonderful people I’ve ever known, and I am honored to be standing here in front of you today to illustrate her life’s legacy.

Mom was born on January 16, 1941. She was taken from us much too soon, on July 16, 2026. There is so much that happened between those two dates, and there is simply no way I could possibly enlighten you on the life mom led in a single speech. But I’m going to do my very best.

Mom was born to Guy and Bertha Johnson and grew up in Dewey. She was one of 5 siblings. These are Frances, Johnny, Dewey, and Georgia Johnson (Hamblin). Growing up, Grandma Johnson said mom showed talent in drawing fashion dresses on paper and if she studied that, she thinks she could have done good. Mom collected comic books at a young age for her and her sister, Georgia, enjoyed swimming in the river and playing checkers. Grandma also said that her major interest was her appearance, neatness, and how her clothes looked on her. Lord, that continued to this day.

When mom came of age, she decided to work at a café in Dewey to help pay for her way through high school, at the age of thirteen.

She graduated from Dewey High School in 1958.

In 1957, mom met and fell in love with my dad, Charlie Kennedy. She made my dad mad because she would always beat him in checkers. He supposedly was the best checker player in his group in high school. They courted for one year and were married on May 28, 1958. They married at the courthouse at 2:30 p.m. and then went back to Dewey High School for her to graduate at 8:00 p.m.

If I could describe mom to you in only a few short words, it would be she would give her shirt off her back. She would take care of family or friends before she would take care of herself, including up to today.

She lived life to the fullest and wasn’t afraid to show the world who she really was. Some of mom’s favorite activities revolved around family and friends. Just visiting with you meant the world to her. It was also one of her greatest joys in life to be in contact with her children, her son, David and myself.

The wonderful thing about mom was that she didn’t live for just herself. Helping others, brightening other people’s lives also brought her so much joy in life.

She has many things to be proud of in life, but she was most proud of her children. She always wanted to know what was going on in our lives and for us to be happy with life.

Allow me to elaborate: she was not only a mom, but she was also our friend. She was always there for my brother and myself. Always available to listen to our adventures. We always knew where to go or who to call. And it was always obvious who the apple of her eye was, both of her children.

I have many wonderful memories of my mom, too many to share and not nearly enough time to. But I can’t not share these few special memories with you, ones that I will forever hold in my heart.

We would always drive from California to Oklahoma once school was out for the summer to see all the family. We would stay with grandma and grandpa on the farm. Our grandparents had pigs on the farm and mom wanted me to get in the mud and go see the pigs. I didn’t want to get in the mud and get dirty. She spanked and told me to get in there. My grandpa laughed and told her I’ve seen parents get mad when kids were in the mud but never a parent whose kid wouldn’t get in the mud. I remember that like it was yesterday.

But my favorite memory of all was her being with me when I was truing on wedding dresses and seeing how proud and happy she was to look forward to my special day. In closing, I want to thank you all once again for being here today with myself and my family as we are preparing to day goodbye to my mom, Betty Lehr.

I also want to say a special thank you to Chase Stevens for being her friend and being available to be sure that she was looked in on. Residing in Nevade, it was hard to be able to help her and Chase was always around. Also, her niece, Wynonna Boone, was another big help for years. All the support, encouragement, and words of comfort over the past several days will always be remembered.

Finally, I want to say goodbye to you, mom. You were such as special person to so many, and your legacy will live on in the beautiful memories you leave for all of us. I will always love and remember you.

Thank you and may God bless.