| Date Span: | 1874-2003 |
| Creator: | McKenzie, Bettie (1925-2005) |
| Extent: | 2.00 linear feet. |
| Collection Number: | IWA0136 |
| Repository: | Iowa Women's Archives |
| Summary: | Community activist from Red Oak, Iowa. |
Elizabeth "Bettie" Bixby, realtor and community activist, was born in Wichita, Kansas, in 1925 to Ruth Wickham Bixby and Benjamin Parker Bixby. Ruth Bixby was a nurse and homemaker and Benjamin Bixby was a physician. Bettie Bixby received her BA in political science from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 1945. In September of that year, she married Lowell "Bob" McKenzie. The couple had three children, Robert, Abigail and Sarah.
The family moved to Red Oak, Iowa, in 1950 when Bob McKenzie took a job with the Thomas D. Murphy Company. Bettie McKenzie was active in her community. In the early 1960s, McKenzie acted as hostess for a Welcome Wagon service she started in Red Oak. She served as president of several organizations, including the Red Oak branch of the American Association of University Women (AAUW), the Montgomery Board of Realtors, the Community Service League, and the United Nations Association. She was also a member of the PTA, the Planned Parenthood of Mid-Iowa Volunteer Council, the Sunshine and Rainbows Day Care Center Board of Directors, and the Montgomery County Democratic Party.
In the 1980s, McKenzie became interested in local history. She served on the Women's History committee and assembled Women's History Day programs for nearly twenty years. She edited several works, including Her Own Story: Ten Benton County Women , They Didn't Have Perma Press , and Women of Montgomery County.
In addition to her community involvement, McKenzie returned to college at Omaha in the 1960s and later took professional courses in real estate from 1973-1987. She worked as a real estate broker for Engquist Insurance (later Hawkeye Insurance).
Bettie McKenzie died in October 2005.
Alternate Extent Statement: Photographs in boxes 4 and 5
6 audiocassettes [AC1197, 1198, AC2122-2125]
Access: The papers are open for research.
Use: Copyright held by the donor has been transferred to the University of Iowa.
Acquisition: The papers (donor no. 199) were donated by Bettie McKenzie in 2005.
Preferred Citation: Bettie McKenzie papers, Iowa Women's Archives, The University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City.
| Repository: | Iowa Women's Archives |
| Address: | 100 Main Library University of Iowa Libraries Iowa City, IA 52242 |
| Phone: | 319-335-5068 |
| Curator: | Kären Mason |
| Email: | lib-women@uiowa.edu |
| Website: | http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/iwa |
Browse by Series:
Series 1: BIOGRAPHICAL
Series 2: SCHOLARLY WORK
Series 3: ADVOCACY
This collection is indexed under the following subject terms.
