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BETTY JANE, born Springfield, Ohio, April 28, 1918, died Cuba, New Mexico, November 9, 2010. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband John Edmund "Jack" Curry in 1974, her mother Lucille Mills Campbell, stepfather Edwin Abercrombie Campbell of Colorado, stepbrothers E. A. "Rusty" Campbell (Lucille Houston Campbell) of Pena Blanca, and Duncan Campbell (Mary Jane) of San Antonio, TX. She is survived by three daughters and a son: Nancy Wade (Chuck) of Gallup, Carolyn Melgaard (Roger) of Cuba, Margaret "Peggy" Ohler (Carl) of Cuba, and James Curry (Anita) of Albuquerque; seven grandchildren: John Curry, Lucy Dickson, Heather Wade, Nathan Wade, Michael Kreg, Christine Greenwood, and Jason Ohler; six great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild. Betty Jane's family fell in love with New Mexico in the 1930s and by 1937 had acquired the old Eureka Ranch, now Deer Lake Estates, and Lobo Camp which was at Clear Creek. She married Jack Curry in 1939, and together they moved to Turkey Canyon in 1940 where Jack was a rancher and the Red Top forest fire lookout. They permanently moved to the ranch at Telephone Canyon in 1947. She taught all four children at home and did double duty as a ranch hand and housewife. After Jack's unexpected death in 1974, she ran the ranch and that of his father, Jim Curry. She reported the Wolf Canyon weather station the family had operated since 1927, was active in founding the Cuba Health Center, served on the board of the Cuba Soil and Water Conservation District for 20 years, served on the board of the Rio Puerco Basin Fair, ran the search operations base station for the Wilderness Area Rescue Squad, co-founded the Forestry Camp at the Chaparral Girl Scouts property and operated a rural mail route for about 30 years. She served as typist for the Penistaja Women's Club, the original publishers of the Cuba News. She later became acting editor, and eventually acquired the monthly paper. It is now in its 47th year. A memorial gathering will be held Saturday, November 20 at the Senior Center in Cuba, New Mexico from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. In lieu of flowers, donations to the New Mexico Boys and Girls Ranches, PO Box 9, Belen, NM 87002 would be appreciated.
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