BETTY SLEMEN
One of the friendliest members of our church family is Betty Slemen. You will find her sitting in the last pew on the south side of the sanctuary…..the striking lady with the beautiful white hair…and equally beautiful smile.
Betty is a relative newcomer to our church, joining our congregation in 1991. Betty has served on the Worship Committee and is the auditor for all the ladies fellowship groups in our church. She attends and participates in the ladies Morning Group. She is also a hospital caller and a member of the Bethany Sunday School class.
Betty moved to Manhattan in 1952 and started her professional career working as a stenographer at the Engineering Experimental Station at Kansas State University. After a few years she was promoted and transferred to the department of Business Administration as the first secretary in that department. She was such a diligent and professional worker that soon after that she was recruited to be the secretary for the Dean of Engineering where she stayed for 31 (35) years, retiring in 1988. Betty received many accolades not only from Kansas State, but also from the city of Manhattan and various civic groups for her well-known abilities to help students and others in the community. One of her major accomplishments is that she is a Past President and Woman of the Year and Super Senior of the Business and Professional Women of Manhattan. Betty celebrated her retirement by taking a bus trip with a friend to California where she had one of the most memorable experiences of her life – attending the Rose Parade in Pasadena on New Year’s Day in 1990.
When Betty’s parents got older and needed attention, she moved them to Manhattan to live with her. She could have moved back to Illinois to take care of them, but aren’t we lucky that she loved her job at Kansas State University and decided to remain in Manhattan! Her mother passed away two years later, but her father liked Betty’s hospitality and cooking well enough to live to be 102!
Many of you know that Betty is an avid gardener and has been on the Manhattan Garden Tour in past years. If you drive by her home, you will get a close up look at what anyone would call a “manicured” yard and garden. As a self-proclaimed “neat-nick”, you will see that every plant and every section of the yard is very neatly cared for, beautifying the entire neighborhood. Betty has also taken several trips to England where she says the highlight is always the Chelsea Gardens. (All of you gardeners know about this place!)
When asked what she likes best about our church Betty says without hesitation – the people! Because of the things above, and her outgoing and engaging personality, we all love her too! We are privileged that Betty is part of our church family.