Battey, Lawrence 'Bo' 1930-2006

BATTEY, STARKE, RANDELL, LIPCAMON, MEACHAM

Posted By: Marilyn Holmes (email)
Date: 7/2/2012 at 10:29:38

The Grinnell (IA) Herald-Register; Nov. 6, 2006

LAWRENCE 'BO' BATTEY

Lawrence Beauregard "Bo" Battey, 76, of Grinnell died Saturday, Nov. 4, 2006, at Grinnell Regional Medical Center.

Funeral services for "Bo" Battey will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 9, 2006, at the United Methodist Church in Grinnell, with Rev. Len Eberhart and Deacon Diane Eberhart officiating. Honorary bearers include John DeRooi, Bob Dimit, Al Eisenman, Fred England, Montie Hammond, Floyd Heishman, Merlin Manatt and Dick Pearce. Interment will be at Hazelwood Cemetery.

Friends may call at the Smith Funeral Home beginning at noon Wednesday; the family will be present to greet friends from 5 to 7 p.m.

Lawrence Beauregard "Bo" Battey was born Jan. 11, 1930, at Oscawana on the Hudson River in New York, to Bryan and Eleanore Starke Battey. His father was Assistant Commissioner of patents for the U.S. government and the family lived in Washington, DC. He attended the Sidwell Friends School there with two older brothers, Bryan and Fraser. He attended Westminster School in Simsbury, Conn.

After his mother married a Midwesterner, the family moved to Osklaoosa, where he graduated from high school. He attended Grinnell College for a short while, then moved to Boulder City, Nev., where he worked with his uncle in his photography business and also worked at Hoover Dam as a power switchboard operator.

He moved with his first wife, Jeanette, and their three children to Grinnell in 1968, to operated the Texaco station, Greyhound bus deport and U-Haul rental business at the corner of Sixth Ave. and West St. His first wife died at age 43, after the couple had been married for 25 years.

On April 4, 1980, he married Betty Ann Randell; the couple enjoyed their combined families and loved wintering in Scottsdale, Ariz.

He served on the board of the Boy Scouts of America, the Grinnell Community Theatre and the Grinnell Fine Arts Council. He was also a member of the Senior Chamber of Commerce, the Elks and the Grinnell Country Club, and attended the United Mehtodist Church on a regular basis with his wife.

He wrote "One for the Money, Two for the Show" to dedicate the new community theater at the time of its opening. He wrote poetry for many occasions which brought both laughter and tears.

He will be remembered as a loving husband, father and stepfather, a "hands-on" grandfather and great-grandfather, a wonderful storyteller to friends, neighbors and relatives.

He is survived by his wife; his children, William Battey of Des Moines, Karen Lipcamon of Cedar Rapids and Howard of Andalusia, Ala.; a step-daugther, Leigh Ann Meacham of Grinnell; nine grandchildren; four great-grandchildren; and a brother, Bryan Battey of Ashville, N.C. He was preceded in death by his parents, his first wife, and his brother, Fraser.

Memorial contributions may be directed to the "Bo" Battey Memorial Fund. Online condolences may be submitted to the family via www.smithfh.com.