BETTE JEAN (EMBRAY) WILLIAMS

Bette Jean (Embray) Williams, the second, and last surviving, of six children of Gabriel Lee Embray and Rose (Rogers) Embray, was born February 16, 1925 in Grandby, Missouri.  Bette spent 85 years in Wichita, Kansas where she made her mark as a unique character.  She had a youthful marriage to Robert Brown and then married and spent the next 40-plus years with Johnny Williams.  After years working as a bookkeeper, homemaker and an occasional bootleg "hair dresser," at age 55 she obtained a GED so she could work as an agent for Western and Southern Life Insurance.  Her gift of gab and ability to connect with people served her well and she frequentlybrokered over $1 million in life insurance policies.  She retired from W/S in 1991.

Bette loved to play all games of contest and she liked it best when gambling was involved, whether at the casinos in Las Vegas, playing tonk on a kitchen table or dominos in the backyard.  According to her, she "cut heads" no matter the game.   As much as she loved to gamble, her true passion was bowling, which she discovered at Imperial Lanes, a black-owned alley in the early 1960's.  Shortly after starting her bowling journey, Bette was one of a trio of women who coerced their way into the previously male-only Metro Bowling Club, which still exists to date. For the next four-plus decades, until she bowled in her last sanctioned league at age 85, she and late husband Johnny bowled in leagues and traveled to prize money tournaments throughout the United States.  In 1993 Bette was inducted into the Wichita Women Bowlers Hall of Fame.

Bette was known for wanting to "run stuff," and that she did.  She held different executive positions for the Metro Bowling Club, its league and annual tournament. She was a certified bowling instructor and ran Metro's youth bowling program for over 25 years.  She was a founding member of the All Schools (Wichita) Reunion Committee that was formed to reunite African-Americanhigh school alumni from the 1940's and 50's.

Bette could often be found on her couch with her ubiquitous cigarette, dog by her side, cup of coffee, furnace set at "equator," a jig saw puzzle in progress, dispensing her brand of wisdom (don't be down on nothing you ain't up on; one monkey don't stop no show; if it makes your socks hop, do it) and giving her rendition of events which often involved "coloring in" when facts were scarce or just not juicy enough.

Bette, you and your one-of-a-kind personality, will long live in the hearts of your son StanWilliams (Janae), stepdaughter Joan Woodson, your grandchildren Doris Williams, Richard and Michael Brown, Vincent Brown, Allen Brown, Teresa, Anthony and Martin Chavez, Jonna Woodson, Lauren White (Dan), multitudes of great grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.  In addition to her husband, two sons, Allen (Pete) Brown and Darren Williams, preceded her in death.