Smith Sippel, Betty Jean (1932-2018)

SMITH, STUENKEL, SIPPEL, BECKMAN, FOLEY, SHORT, GERSIN, REDDOUT, BABCOCK, CUNNINGHAM, KONRADI, STEGALL, STUCKENSCHNEIDER, THOMPSON, FABER

Posted By: Paul Nagy (email)
Date: 11/27/2018 at 16:58:04

Betty Jean Sippel Smith
March 29, 1932 - October 16, 2018

Betty Jean Sippel Smith, age 86, of San Antonio, Texas, formerly of Early, Iowa, died on Tuesday, October 16, 2018, in San Antonio, Texas.

Betty Jean Stuenkel was born on March 29, 1932, in Storm Lake, Iowa, to Henry and Irene Allison Stuenkel. She attended and then graduated from Hayes Consolidated School in rural Storm Lake in 1950.

Betty loved to dance, and to no one’s surprise, she met her future husband, Bill Sippel, of Schaller, at a dance at the Cobblestone Ballroom. They married on March 26, 1951, just before Bill was deployed to Japan with the U.S. Navy. Before their wedding, Betty converted to the Catholic faith, which became a source of comfort and devotion for her throughout her life. After Bill returned from his military service, they lived in Omaha, Nebraska, and Conrad, Montana, before returning to Schaller to farm. While living in Storm Lake, they continued to enjoy many dances at the Cobblestone, the Schaller VFW, and other area venues.

In addition to grain farming, Bill and Betty had a dairy herd for many years. A hardworking partner in the farming operation, Betty drove tractors, walked beans, milked cows, and raised sheep. In addition, she had a love for horses and riding, and she was especially happy when her ewes were lambing.

When poor health forced Bill’s early retirement from farming, Bill and Betty bought a home in Victoria, Texas, with hopes of spending their retirement years in a warm climate. Bill died in October 1992.

In February of 1995 Betty married Dolen Smith. They enjoyed many years of contented and loving companionship in Victoria until health issues resulted in their move to the Poet’s Walk nursing home in San Antonio where Betty died on October 16, 2018.

Betty was preceded in death by her parents, her sister, Lois; and her brother, Cliff; her first husband. Bill; and two sons, Neal, in 1980, and Larry, in 1993.

Those left to cherish her memory include her husband, Dolen Smith; her sons: Mark (Julie), Steven (Connie), and Bill (Alyce); her daughter, Lisa; her daughter-in-law, Susan (David) Beckman; her stepchildren: Della (Roger) Foley, Cindy Short, Judy (Bob) Gersin, Diann (Ron) Reddout, and Andy (Cindy) Smith; her grandchildren: Sarah Babcock; Chelsea Cunningham; Amber Konradi; Adam, Christopher, Daniel, Heidi, Henry, Jacob, Jared, Justin, Laura, Melissa, Molly, Nick, and Thomas Sippel; Rachael Stegall; Hayley Stuckenschneider; and Mindy Thompson; thirty-one great-grandchildren; two great-great grandchildren; eleven step grandchildren; nine step great grandchildren; and her brothers-in-law, Joe Sippel, of Des Moines, Iowa, and Jerry Faber, of Clear Lake, Iowa, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

A Funeral Mass will be offered on Friday, October 26, 2018, at 10:30 a.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Early. Burial will follow in the church cemetery. Visitation will take place on Thursday, October 25, 2018, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. with a rosary at 5:15 p.m. and a vigil service at 7:30 p.m., all at the Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in STORM LAKE. The Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake is in charge of the arrangements.

Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Homes, Storm Lake, Iowa, 2018.

Buena Vista Obituaries maintained by Lynn Diemer-Mathews.
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