Betty Lou (Whitman) Bayliff

Betty Lou (Whitman) Bayliff, 92, of Kokomo, passed away Monday night, Sept. 28, 2020 at 10:30 p.m.

She was born Sept. 3, 1928, in Ashtabula, Ohio, to the late Paul H. and Lucille (Allee) Whitman.

On June 4, 1949, she married the late Edgar W. Bayliff in the Christian Church in Greencastle.

Besides her parents and her husband, Betty was preceded in death by her sister Marjorie (Henry) Kroft of Atlanta and brother Gordon (Mary Nell) Whitman of Greencastle.

Survivors include children Brad (Lisa) Bayliff of Blanco, Texas, and Dixie (Jeff) McKean of Indianapolis; grandchildren Corby (Casey) McKean and Carly McKean of Indianapolis; one great-grandchild, Landon McKean of Indianapolis; and several loved nieces, nephews and great-nieces and great-nephews.

Betty was a direct descendant of David Allee of Montgomery County, Va., who served in the French and Indian War and the American Revolution.

Betty spent her childhood in Putnam County, on her parents’ farm, which fronted on U.S. 40, also known as The National Road. She graduated from Greencastle High School and Indiana Business College in Indianapolis.

When she was young, Betty was a performer who held major roles in many plays and shows. She made several appearances performing on local radio stations. At age 21, Betty was a semi-finalist in a national contest for a full scholarship to the Pasadena Playhouse, sponsored by Photo Play movie magazine.

Betty had a big personality and a knack for making everyone around her feel special and important. Her laugh could fill up a room and she loved a good party. Betty was a top-flight shopper and enjoyed buying gifts for other people.

One of Betty’s true passions was travel. Betty and Ed were charter members of Voyager 1,000, which later became Ambassadair Travel Club. In addition to traveling all over the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean, Betty visited many countries in Europe as well as Egypt, Turkey, Morocco and Venezuela. She once flew to Europe on the supersonic Concorde Jet. Betty’s all-time favorite city was New Orleans where she visited many times, and she even named her daughter Dixie as a tribute to The Big Easy.

Betty was a thoroughbred racing enthusiast and attended more than 30 Kentucky Derbies, always with a group of great friends. She also attended the Preakness, Belmont, English Derby, France’s Arc de Triumph and many other races around the country. She was the part-owner of a couple thoroughbreds and loved the excitement of watching them race. She also loved all the arts and was a voracious reader, which was instilled in her as a little girl visiting the Putnam County Public Library.

She was a member of the Main Street United Methodist Church, the Republican Women’s Club, the Kokomo Country Club, the Howard County Cancer Board and was an officer of the Cheer Guild at Howard Community Hospital. Betty and Ed were fortunate to live in the Stonybrook subdivision, where they shared their street with many of the same wonderful neighbors for as long as 50 years or more.

Visitation will be held Sunday, Oct. 4 from 1-3:30 p.m. at Shirley & Stout Lincoln Road Chapel, 1315 W. Lincoln Road, Kokomo. There will be a memorial service following visitation at 3:30 pm. A graveside burial service will take place at Cloverdale Cemetery in on Monday, Oct. 5 at 11 a.m.

Messages of condolence may be left online at www.shirleyandstout.com. Donations may be made to the Putnam County Public Library, 103 E. Poplar Street, Greencastle, IN 46135.