Obituary of Bette Joe Kenaston

Bette Joe Kenaston, 84, passed away April 4, 2017. Service: 7 p.m. Wednesday, at Martin Thompson & Son Funeral Home, 6009 Wedgwood Dr., Fort Worth, TX 76133. Bette was born in Oklahoma on August 19, 1932, and grew up during the depression years. She and her younger sister, Mary, were extremely close and remained lifelong best friends. Bette was a fun-loving, beautiful young woman and married her first husband in 1951. Their marriage produced her three children before ending in 1969. In 1976, she met John Robert Kenaston and moved with him to Texas in 1978. They were married in 1979 and have been together ever since. Their life in Texas was full of adventure. They were both long-time members of the Harley Riders of Fort Worth and traveled extensively throughout the United States. Bette was also a gifted artist and belonged to the (International) Society of Decorative Painters, Fort Worth chapter. She loved to paint and shared her talents by teaching many classes over the years. She was extremely honored one year to have a Christmas ornament selected for a display at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C. She also worked for Junior Achievement for twenty years as a bookkeeper and in-house “artist” lending her expertise in assisting her fellow painters and co-workers in providing hand-painted gifts and prizes for fund-raising events. She retired in 1998. Bette’s outgoing personality, fun-loving spirit, and genuine love of life and the people she met insured that she was never a stranger to anyone. Despite severe hardships and life-threatening illnesses over the years, she never stopped believing that things would only get better. She loved her life, her friends, and her family and was deeply loved in return. She is survived by her husband, John Robert ‘Grambo’ Kenaston; three children: Karen Jackson, Linda Dale, and Antony Jackson; five grandchildren: Sarah Ivanhoe, Jennifer Long, Erik Everson, Emily Smith, and Danika Jackson; eight great grandchildren: Nickelas Austin, Katherine Austin, Lliam Austin, Leighanna Stewart, Zachariah Harris, Thomas Austin, Zoe Smith and Luke Smith; one great, great grandson: Timothy Austin; and two nieces: Sherri Nicholas and Tracie Leuker. She was preceded in death by her mother, Blanche Morris, and her beloved sister, Mary Thompson.