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Dowdle -- Betty Jo Dowdle of Honolulu, Hawaii, passed away on June 26, 1999, after a lengthy illness. She was 69. Miss Dowdle was preceded in death by her parents, former Mayor, George A. Dowdle and Cleo Cochran Dowdle; and step-mother, Virginia Smiley Dowdle, all of Deming; her sister, Dorothy Lynn Harley of Albuquerque; and a nephew, George R. Dowdle of Dallas, TX. She is survived by her brother and sister-in-law, John R. and Mary R. Dowdle of Dallas; her brother-in-law, William P. Harley Jr. of Albuquerque; numerous nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews living in Albuquerque, Stamford, CT, Tampa, FL, and San Francisco, CA. Miss Dowdle was born in Alamogordo and moved to Deming with her family as a young girl. As a teenager, she was tested by adversity, when she lost her beloved mother and was severely stricken with polio. After several years of hospitalization and rehabilitation, she returned to Deming, where she graduated from high school in 1948. Active in many high school clubs and academic organizations, she led the campaign promoting lowering the voting age to 18 in New Mexico and spoke before the 1948 Legislative Session in support of that movement. She was also a member of the Order of Rainbow. Afterwards, Miss Dowdle graduated from Ward Belmont College in Nashville, Tennessee, received a B.A. degree in English and Journalism from the University of New Mexico in 1953, and her M.A. from Long Beach State University of California. At the University of New Mexico, she joined the Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority. Her post-graduate work included studies at Middlebury College and Oxford University. Her first position after graduation from college was as a reporter for The Albuquerque Journal, where Miss Dowdle had a by-lined column,"People and Parties." Her previous background in newspaper work was during high school when she was a feature article writer for The El Paso Times, focusing on Southwestern history. Her career in education started as an English teacher at Highland High School in Albuquerque in 1953. For several years after that, she taught and was a counselor at Westlake School for Girls in Los Angeles, California. She then moved to Honolulu, where she first taught in the public school system in Honolulu and then for seven years at Kamehameha School. In the mid-1960s, Miss Dowdle accepted a faculty position at the University of Hawaii, where she became an Associate Professor teaching English and literature classes. Due to physical limitations resulting from post-polio syndrome, she spent the final years of her academic career in the Kapiolani Community College in Honolulu, where she was nominated for teacher-of-the-Year awards on several occasions. She retired from teaching due to health problems in 1989. Following her retirement, she remained active in civic affairs and cultural activities, including The Post Polio Support Group, Friends of the Library in Honolulu, Kappa Kappa Gamma Alumni Group, The Contemporary Museum, and service on the Board of Directors of Friends of the (Honolulu) Library. Miss Dowdle, who was deeply interested in religion, was a lifelong member of the Methodist Church, but attended different services and studied a variety of beliefs. She will be remembered by private, simple services for close friends and relatives. Betty Jo will be deeply missed by her family, friends, students, and all who were blessed by knowing her. People in Hawaii and throughout the mainland will continue to admire her compassion for others, as well as her courage. Memorial contributions may be made to The March of Dimes.
        Published on: Tue June 29, 1999