Betty Lou Bell, age 91, Carthage, Missouri, passed away Sunday, October 2, 2022, at Mercy Hospital, Springfield, Missouri. Betty was born April 5, 1931, in Granby, Missouri to the late John Tuggle and Bertha (Cook) Tuggle. She was a 1949 graduate of Granby High School and received her bachelor’s degree from Southwest Missouri State University. Betty married Joel Judson Bell, Jr. on August 10, 1952, in Granby, Missouri.
Betty taught school for two years in Newton County before moving to Carthage. She taught elementary school for twenty years at Eugene Field and Fairview before teaching home economics at the Carthage Jr. High School for ten years. After retiring, she spent many years substitute teaching.
Betty had a passion for theater and was one of the founding members of Stone’s Throw Theater in Carthage. She spent many years volunteering and acting in dinner theater at Stone’s Throw. A highlight of her career was participating in the 2016 Maple Leaf Parade as Grand Marshall. Her hobbies included genealogy, quilting, and playing Bridge.
Betty was a member of Beta Sigma Phi Sorority, the Granby Missouri Order of the Eastern Star, and a member of the First United Methodist Church in Carthage.
Surviving family members include a daughter, Vicki Grider (Lee), Monkey Island, Oklahoma; a son, Greg Bell (Mary), Fort Wayne, Indiana; and a brother, Jerry Tuggle (Charlotte), Granby, Missouri.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Joel Judson Bell, Jr.; and a grandson, Jack Harrison Bell.
A special thanks to her dear friends, Sybil Taylor, Pat Brown, and Olive Thomas, for their endless support for Betty.
Graveside services will be held 2 pm, Friday, October 7, 2022, at Granby Memorial Cemetery, Granby, Missouri. Betty will lie in state from 8 am to 5 pm, Thursday, October 6, 2022, at Knell Mortuary, Carthage, for those who wish to sign the register book and pay respects. Memorial gifts are suggested to Stone’s Throw Theater, Carthage in care of Knell Mortuary. Online condolences may be expressed through www.knellmortuary.com. Arrangements are under the direction and personal care of Knell Mortuary.
