Betty Jane Barnett

Elizabeth (Betty) Jane Barnett a respected educator, Sisters of Charity Roman Catholic nun and avid hiker passed away peacefully in her home on Friday, November 30, 2007. She was 84. The cause was complications from a re-lapse of cancer. She was born in Somerset, KY on September 23, 1923, the third child of Dora Elizabeth and James Frank Barnett. Two brothers, Eugene Barnett (Jean) and William Barnett of Somerset and a sister Estelle Drake (Gene) of Frankfort, Kentucky, survive her. She was preceded in death by a brother, James Frank Barnett, Jr. She attended Somerset High School graduating in 1941 and Webster University in St. Louis. During World War II she worked as a secretary for the War Department in Washington, DC, living in a make shift dorm constructed on the Capital Mall. She was greatly influenced by the writings of Thomas Merton. First converting to Catholicism and later joining the Sisters of Charity in Nazareth, Kentucky an order dedicated to working for justice for the oppressed and economically poor and care for the earth. Her work took her into the Deep South were she taught poor African American Children in the days prior to desegregation. She taught school around the country in the Catholic School System including St. Louis Mo, Dayton Oh and Louisville, KY. Later she taught Fifth-grade in the Somerset Independent System at Memorial Elementary. At age 74 she and her brother Bill completed the entire 269-mile Sheltowee Trace through Tennessee and Kentucky, the equivalent of walking from Somerset to Downtown Louisville and back to Danville. In a featured article in the Courier-Journal she said, “It was a thrilling experience. I always loved Kentucky, and now I’m enamored of it.” She called herself a “Hard-core hiker” and walked most everyday of her life and organized many hiking clubs. Her favorite hike was Mt. LeConte in the Smokies, the third-highest peak in the Appalachian range, which she hiked 179 times. She had a passion for opera and was a long time patron of Knoxville Opera and was also a long standing member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She bequeathed her body to further research and education at the University of Kentucky medical center. A memorial service and Mass will be held at St. Mildred’s Roman Catholic Church in Somerset on Friday December 14th, 2007 at 12 noon. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations be sent to Hospice of Lake Cumberland, 100 Parkway Drive, Somerset, KY 42501