Betty Dehon

(From Ferry Funeral Home)

Betty June (Jewell) Dehon passed away peacefully at her home at Morningside of Nevada on Wednesday morning, July 25, 2018.

Betty was born on February 20, 1926 in Arcadia, Kansas to Franklin Albert and Maude (Taylor) Jewell. Betty’s early childhood was spent in Arcadia where she attended elementary school and graduated from Crawford County Community High School of Arcadia in 1943.

Teaching was the prominent profession of both sides of her family so, consequently, her parents encouraged her to follow in that field. When she graduated from high school, World War II was in progress, and there was a shortage of teachers. Betty attended the 1943 summer college session at Kansas State Teachers College of Pittsburg, receiving an emergency certificate to teach school in 1943-1944 in the one-room country school located in the northwest part of Arcadia, Corinth District. She extremely enjoyed her eight-month teaching tenure. Her teaching salary was $80/month. During her eight months of teaching, Betty was encouraged by her Aunt Jessie and her good friend, Port Corparan, to join the cadet nurse corps at Mt. Carmel Hospital located in Pittsburg, KS.

In May 1944 Betty enrolled in the cadet nursing corps at Mt. Carmel and graduated in May 1947 with a Diploma in Nursing. She subsequently passed her Kansas State Nursing Board and became a board-certified registered nurse. Upon graduation, Betty first worked in the operating room of Mt. Carmel, both as an assistant and later as Operating Room Director, under the supervision of Dear Sister Mary Herbert.

On July 21, 1950, Betty married Des Dehon, Jr. at the Arma, KS Methodist Parsonage. Their marriage was performed by Rev. William Alexander. Betty and Des then moved to Pittsburg, KS where they resided for four years.

In August of 1954, they moved to Humboldt, KS, as Des had accepted a teaching position in the Humboldt School District. From August 1954-August 1956, Betty worked part-time as a Registered Nurse in Iola, KS. In August 1956, Betty and Des moved to Nevada, MO where Des taught at Nevada High School until his retirement in 1985. In 1958, Betty started her career as the Registered Nurse Night Supervisor in Nevada State Hospital #3. Betty retired from nursing in 1987.

Betty was preceded in death by her parents, Frank and Maude Jewell, husband, Des, brothers Howard Jewell, Franklin Jewell, Eugene Jewell, Charles Jewell, Paul Jewell, and Frederic Allen Jewell, and sister, Donna Cooley. Survivors include her daughter Debra Stacy and her husband James of Nevada, Two sons, Jeff Dehon and his wife Lisa, and Lee Dehon and his wife Beth both of Olathe, KS, grandchildren Brant Lael Stacy, Olathe, Diedra Stacy Lathrop and her husband Kyle, Olathe, Desiree Stacy Overton and her husband Josh Overton, Moundville, MO, Max Dehon, Olathe, KS, Jewell Dehon and Jaycee Dehon, Olathe. Betty is also survived by her great-grandchildren, Liam Lathrop, Leah Lathrop, Jaxon Overton, and step-great-grandchildren, Malakai Overton, Zoe Overton, and Xaerik Overton, and one brother-in-law, Carrol Fleury, Arma , KS.

Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, August 1, 2018 at Ferry Funeral Home in Nevada with Rev Kay Zimmer officiating. Interment will follow in Newton Burial Park. Friends may call from 8:00 am on Monday, July 30th, until the hour of service on Wednesday. The family will receive friends from 10:00–11:00 a.m. prior to the service on Wednesday.

Those who wish may contribute to the Des and Betty Dehon Memorial Scholarship Fund or to Avalon Hospice c/o Ferry Funeral Home, 301 S. Washington, Nevada, MO 64772.