Elizabeth Anne Conn
April 9, 1932 — December 9, 2023
Elizabeth Anne Conn was born on April 9, 1932, in Des Moines, IA. She was adopted as a child by E. Frank “Frankie” and Mary Louise Warren, who were farming on a farm 3 ½ miles north of Beech, Iowa. The Warrens later adopted a son, Bob.
Betty attended the Beech Consolidated School throughout most of elementary and middle school. Her parents retired from farming in 1944 and moved to Indianola for a few months where she finished the eighth grade. The Warren family moved to Pleasantville in June of 1945 where Betty completed high school. Betty graduated from high school in 1949 and entered the American Institute of Business (AIB) in the fall of that year, enrolling in a secretarial training course. After completing her secretarial training course she worked for the KRNT television station. She was married to the love of her life, Robert “Bob” G. Conn on November 22, 1951, and they were married in The Little Brown Church in Nasha, Iowa.
Betty continued working until her first son, Michael “Mickey” was born in November of 1952. She became a stay-at-home mom for 4 years and during that time the Conn family moved to Cedar Rapids and then to Kansas City, Missouri, where they bought a home and Bob worked as an accountant at Hallmark Cards. When Mickey was 4, Betty began working at AT&T and continued working there until their second son, Daniel “Dan” was born in June of 1958. They lived in Kansas City for 12 years until her husband, Bob, died of a heart attack.
After Bob died, Betty moved the family to Fort Myers, Florida, for a school year, where her parents owned a home and resided during the late fall and winter months. She eventually moved the family back to Pleasantville where she resided until May of 2022. While in Pleasantville she worked part-time as a librarian at the Webb Shadle Public Library and as a secretary for the Myers Insurance Agency for several years. After she retired from working as a secretary, she spent many years as a snowbird, traveling to the Orange Harbor Trailer Park in Fort Myers, Florida during the late fall and winter months, first with her father, and she continued going there after he died. She stopped traveling to Florida in 2021 and she sold her trailer in December of 2022. She moved into an apartment in Homestead Assisted Living, LLC of Knoxville, Iowa in Mary of2022 after suffering a debilitating fall outside of her home in Pleasantville and lived there up until November 26, 2023, when she was transferred to the University of Iowa Hospital in Iowa City, Iowa for surgery and treatment of a bowel obstruction. She died while recovering from her surgery on December 9, 2023, at the age of 91 years, 8 months.
Betty was an active member of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Pleasantville for many years and served in various capacities there, including serving as the church financial secretary. She was always financially prudent and frugal, raised two boys on her own and helped pay for them both to get their college education. She was always willing to lend a hand and had a warm, caring and cheerful disposition. She never stopped expressing her concern for her son, Dan, right up to the very end of her life. She enjoyed reading, gardening, especially tending to her flowers, bushes, trees and cleaning up her yard, taking frequent walks to the park, to the Webb Shadle Public Library and to the Pleasantville Dollar General Store, socializing with people, singing old classics, listening to old time country music, working on word searches and jigsaw puzzles and bird watching.
In response to Betty’s passing, Bobby Russell wrote, “I can remember spending weeks in the summertime with Grandma Conn down in Pleasantville at her house with Cousin Dan and Aunt Betty. Se was always so kind and had her own little sense of humor.”
In response to Betty’s passing, Gary Russell wrote, “She was a special lady.”
In response to Betty’s passing, Joni Cowden wrote, “Betty was a gem of a woman and I got to know her more when she worked at Myer’s (Insurance) Office downtown all those years and I spoke with her monthly when I went in to pay our house payment there. She was always so kind, respectful and we always had some nice conversations. I always respected her work ethic as I saw her care for her yard over the years, too.”
In response to her grandma’s passing, Kathryn “Katie” Conn wrote, “Grandma Conn was a wonderful person and I’ll forever cherish my memories of her.” Katie also spoke about her relationship with her Grandma Conn when she was a child growing up in Davenport, Iowa, and said that she attributes her love of reading to her grandmother because she read books to her and gave her some Dr. Seuss books to read on her own and she remembers taking walks to the local A&W Restaurant with her.
Betty was preceded in death by her parents, E. Frank “Frankie” and Louise Warren, her husband, Bob, her son Micheal “Mickey”, her brother, Bob Warren of Benton Harbor, Michigan, her brother-in-law, Richard of San Antonio, Texas, her sister-in-law, Helen Russell and her husband, Bob, her niece, Rosalyn and her husband, Chuck, her nephew in law, Ralph Vance, all of Des Moines, her brother-in-law, Billy, and his wife, Elizabeth, her niece, Becky Loomis, and her nephew-in-law, Verle Young, all of Milo.
Those left to cherish Betty’s memory are her son, Daniel, daughter-in-law, Ida May, grandsons, Tim and Robert, granddaughter Jeannette, and her husband, Scott, all of Hamilton, New Jersey, granddaughter Kathryn “Katie” of Denver, Colorado, sister-in-law, Elizabeth Warren of Benton Harbor, Michigan, a niece, Joyce Vance, a nephew, Bobby Russell and his wife, Terry, a great nephew, Jeff and his wife, Melissa, all of Des Moines, a niece, Sharon Young, of Milo, a nephew-in-law, Roland Loomis, of Saint Charles, a sister-in-law, Linda Clark, nephews, James and David Conn, all of San Antonio, Texas, nieces, Debbie, Pam and Tricia of Texas, nephew, Gary Russell and great niece, Tanya, both of Tallahassee, Florida, great nephew, Jason, of Urbandale, great nephews, Andrew of West Des Moines and Aaron of Des Moines.
A funeral service for Betty Conn, age 91 of Pleasantville, will be held Friday, December 15, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the church. Burial will follow in the Pleasantville Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Friends of Webb Shadle Public Library. Mason Funeral Home is handling arrangements and online condolences may be left at www.BertrandFuneralHomes.com .
Betty attended the Beech Consolidated School throughout most of elementary and middle school. Her parents retired from farming in 1944 and moved to Indianola for a few months where she finished the eighth grade. The Warren family moved to Pleasantville in June of 1945 where Betty completed high school. Betty graduated from high school in 1949 and entered the American Institute of Business (AIB) in the fall of that year, enrolling in a secretarial training course. After completing her secretarial training course she worked for the KRNT television station. She was married to the love of her life, Robert “Bob” G. Conn on November 22, 1951, and they were married in The Little Brown Church in Nasha, Iowa.
Betty continued working until her first son, Michael “Mickey” was born in November of 1952. She became a stay-at-home mom for 4 years and during that time the Conn family moved to Cedar Rapids and then to Kansas City, Missouri, where they bought a home and Bob worked as an accountant at Hallmark Cards. When Mickey was 4, Betty began working at AT&T and continued working there until their second son, Daniel “Dan” was born in June of 1958. They lived in Kansas City for 12 years until her husband, Bob, died of a heart attack.
After Bob died, Betty moved the family to Fort Myers, Florida, for a school year, where her parents owned a home and resided during the late fall and winter months. She eventually moved the family back to Pleasantville where she resided until May of 2022. While in Pleasantville she worked part-time as a librarian at the Webb Shadle Public Library and as a secretary for the Myers Insurance Agency for several years. After she retired from working as a secretary, she spent many years as a snowbird, traveling to the Orange Harbor Trailer Park in Fort Myers, Florida during the late fall and winter months, first with her father, and she continued going there after he died. She stopped traveling to Florida in 2021 and she sold her trailer in December of 2022. She moved into an apartment in Homestead Assisted Living, LLC of Knoxville, Iowa in Mary of2022 after suffering a debilitating fall outside of her home in Pleasantville and lived there up until November 26, 2023, when she was transferred to the University of Iowa Hospital in Iowa City, Iowa for surgery and treatment of a bowel obstruction. She died while recovering from her surgery on December 9, 2023, at the age of 91 years, 8 months.
Betty was an active member of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Pleasantville for many years and served in various capacities there, including serving as the church financial secretary. She was always financially prudent and frugal, raised two boys on her own and helped pay for them both to get their college education. She was always willing to lend a hand and had a warm, caring and cheerful disposition. She never stopped expressing her concern for her son, Dan, right up to the very end of her life. She enjoyed reading, gardening, especially tending to her flowers, bushes, trees and cleaning up her yard, taking frequent walks to the park, to the Webb Shadle Public Library and to the Pleasantville Dollar General Store, socializing with people, singing old classics, listening to old time country music, working on word searches and jigsaw puzzles and bird watching.
In response to Betty’s passing, Bobby Russell wrote, “I can remember spending weeks in the summertime with Grandma Conn down in Pleasantville at her house with Cousin Dan and Aunt Betty. Se was always so kind and had her own little sense of humor.”
In response to Betty’s passing, Gary Russell wrote, “She was a special lady.”
In response to Betty’s passing, Joni Cowden wrote, “Betty was a gem of a woman and I got to know her more when she worked at Myer’s (Insurance) Office downtown all those years and I spoke with her monthly when I went in to pay our house payment there. She was always so kind, respectful and we always had some nice conversations. I always respected her work ethic as I saw her care for her yard over the years, too.”
In response to her grandma’s passing, Kathryn “Katie” Conn wrote, “Grandma Conn was a wonderful person and I’ll forever cherish my memories of her.” Katie also spoke about her relationship with her Grandma Conn when she was a child growing up in Davenport, Iowa, and said that she attributes her love of reading to her grandmother because she read books to her and gave her some Dr. Seuss books to read on her own and she remembers taking walks to the local A&W Restaurant with her.
Betty was preceded in death by her parents, E. Frank “Frankie” and Louise Warren, her husband, Bob, her son Micheal “Mickey”, her brother, Bob Warren of Benton Harbor, Michigan, her brother-in-law, Richard of San Antonio, Texas, her sister-in-law, Helen Russell and her husband, Bob, her niece, Rosalyn and her husband, Chuck, her nephew in law, Ralph Vance, all of Des Moines, her brother-in-law, Billy, and his wife, Elizabeth, her niece, Becky Loomis, and her nephew-in-law, Verle Young, all of Milo.
Those left to cherish Betty’s memory are her son, Daniel, daughter-in-law, Ida May, grandsons, Tim and Robert, granddaughter Jeannette, and her husband, Scott, all of Hamilton, New Jersey, granddaughter Kathryn “Katie” of Denver, Colorado, sister-in-law, Elizabeth Warren of Benton Harbor, Michigan, a niece, Joyce Vance, a nephew, Bobby Russell and his wife, Terry, a great nephew, Jeff and his wife, Melissa, all of Des Moines, a niece, Sharon Young, of Milo, a nephew-in-law, Roland Loomis, of Saint Charles, a sister-in-law, Linda Clark, nephews, James and David Conn, all of San Antonio, Texas, nieces, Debbie, Pam and Tricia of Texas, nephew, Gary Russell and great niece, Tanya, both of Tallahassee, Florida, great nephew, Jason, of Urbandale, great nephews, Andrew of West Des Moines and Aaron of Des Moines.
A funeral service for Betty Conn, age 91 of Pleasantville, will be held Friday, December 15, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church. The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the church. Burial will follow in the Pleasantville Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Friends of Webb Shadle Public Library. Mason Funeral Home is handling arrangements and online condolences may be left at www.BertrandFuneralHomes.com .
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