Mrs. BETTY LU MEEK PATTEN

FORT WORTH -- Betty Meek Patten, a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, died peacefully early Thursday morning, June 5, 2014. Mrs. Patten was 18 days away from her 93rd birthday. Memorial service: 2 p.m. Wednesday in the Chapel of the Good Shepherd at University Christian Church, 2720 S. University Drive, with family and friends gathering in the church's library immediately following the service. She will be laid to rest privately next to her husband, George, in the Mausoleum in Greenwood Memorial Park. Mrs. Patten will lie state from 1 to 5 p.m. Tuesday in the Drawing Room at Robertson Mueller Harper. Memorials: In lieu of flowers, consideration of contributions to University Christian Church or to a charity of choice, in her memory, is suggested. Born in Winona, Minn., on June 23, 1921, Betty was the daughter of Frank and Opal Meek. She attended school in Winona before graduating from high school in St. Cloud, Minn. She was a 1941 graduate of St. Mary's School of Nursing in Minneapolis, Minn. Betty was hired by American Airlines in November 1941, the last class of registered nurses to be hired prior to the beginning of World War II. She went to stewardess school in Flushing, N.Y., and flew from New York before transferring to Los Angeles, Calif. While in Los Angeles, she met her future husband, George O. Patten Jr., a first officer with American. She and George served many bases until 1946 when the returned to Fort Worth to make their home for over 50 years. After her children "left the nest," she went back to the nursing field, working at All Saints Episcopal Hospital for 22 years and retiring in 1986. Betty was a longtime member of University Christian Church and Colonial Country Club where she was a member of Colonial Women's Golf Association. She was active in the Kiwi Club, an organization of former AA stewardesses, and Delta Gamma Fraternity, serving in many capacities for the Gamma Tau Chapter at Texas Christian University. She would like to think she has left a legacy for her children and grandchildren of "doing for others," a heritage learned from her parents. She always found happiness in helping people in need. Survivors: In addition to her daughter, Colleen Patten Finnegan and her husband, Dennis, of Fort Worth, Betty is survived by her son, George O. Patten III and his wife, Barbara, of Sacramento, Calif.; grandchildren, Stephanie Bailey, Steven Gonzales and his wife, Denise, and Matt Bailey and his wife, Jennifer; and great-grandchildren, Ryan, Alex, Patrick, Shane, Elizabeth, Jeremiah and Samuel. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Mrs. BETTY LU MEEK PATTEN please visit our Sympathy Store.