Passed away peacefully at home with her family by her side on Sunday, May 2, 2010. Her husband, Bob, and her parents, Joe and Fay Jenkins, preceded her in death. Betty Joe was born on September 2, 1922, in Salt Lake City, Utah during the time her father, Joe, was a catcher with the Chicago White Sox. The Jenkins family lived in many Southern California cities before finally settling on the family ranch in Hanford. Betty Joe attended Grangeville Elementary School and Hanford Union High School, graduating in 1940. She was a scholastic leader in high school and a life member of Alpha Omega Omicron, a national honor society. She was also a member of the Hanford High debate team that captured top state honors. In 1940, Betty Joe was admitted to the University of California, Berkeley where she pledged the Delta Gamma Sorority. In her junior year she was selected Queen of the Junior Prom. It was in that year she met her future husband, Captain Robert B. Asbury. They were married on March 24, 1943. Being the wife of an Air Force officer, Betty Joe lived in many places. While living in Portland, Oregon she was invited to become a member of the Portland Junior League where she participated in numerous philanthropic activities. Later, during the Korean War, Bob was transferred to Germany with Betty Joe and their children joining him shortly thereafter. After returning from Germany in 1953, the family settled in Fresno, California where Bob began working for the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), which later became the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Betty Joe decided to return to college and complete her degree. In 1959 she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Fresno State University and in 1961 earned a Masters Degree in Education. Soon after graduation Betty Joe began teaching at Tenaya Junior High School and later became a professor at Fresno City College where she taught political science for many years. Betty Joe was a member of many social clubs in Fresno including the Junior League, La Feliz Guild, and the Home and Garden Club. Among Betty Joe's greatest enjoyments in life were the three "P's"---people, politics and, of course, parties where she was always accompanied by Bob, the love of her life, and later by her son Bill. The family would like to thank all of her dedicated health care providers with special thanks to Dr. Steven Chooljian for his wonderful and personal care over the years. Betty Joe is survived by her daughter, Susan Crowell and her husband Bob; son, William J. Asbury; brother, Dan Jenkins and his wife Doris; sister, Peggy Veach; and six grandchildren. A Memorial Service will be held at Stephens & Bean Chapel on Saturday, May 22, 2010, at 1:00 p.m. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to Children's Hospital Central California. STEPHENS & BEAN CHAPEL 202 North Teilman Avenue Fresno, California (559)268-9292

Published in the Fresno Bee on May 9, 2010