Betty Lucille Forest

Betty Lucille Baughman, the youngest child of Cecil and Gertrude (Bonesteel) Baughman, was born on August 15, 1925, in Judd, Iowa. Raised on a farm, Betty graduated from Sioux Rapids High School in 1943 and went on to attend Buena Vista College in Storm Lake, Iowa. Because of the shortage of teachers following WWII, Betty obtained her degree early and began teaching English and Literature at the high school in Deloit, Iowa. After marriage, Ida Grove became her home for nearly 20 years where she became actively involved in her church and community. Her love and talent for the arts inspired her to write humorous 'readings', short stories and plays. She quickly became a popular speaker for many events. This led to her involvement in performing, and sometimes directing, in the community theater. While in Ida Grove, Betty owned and operated the local flower shop. She later wrote for the newspaper, the Pioneer Record, and was probably best known for her humorous column 'Pertinent Piffle', by Betty Hutchinson. Betty was lured to Cherokee by a job offer from KCHE radio. Shortly thereafter, she became involved in the Cherokee Community Theater, where she met and fell in love with Duane Forest. They were married December 3, 1971. Along with Duane, her greatest love was for her children, Sally, Michelle, Mike, Linda, and Bruce. After her retirement from KCHE, Betty was enticed by the Chronicle Times to write the humorous column, 'A View from the Forest'. For over 40 years in Cherokee, she has served on numerous boards and committees and was active in St. Paul's United Methodist Church, the Cherokee Library, Cherokee Community Theater, the symphony, Sanford Museum, and BPW. An avid reader, Betty enjoyed her book club and eating out with 'the ladies'. She is known for her deep faith, quick wit, unique sense of humor, gingersnap cookies, and knowledge of cows--believing into adulthood that all black cows are boys and all brown cows are girls, as told to her by her brother Bill. She cherished her family, her cat Gracie, and her friends. Following a brief illness, Betty passed away on Saturday, September 21, 2013, at the Cherokee Regional Medical Center. She was preceded in death by her husband, Duane Forest, her parents Cecil and Gertrude Baughman, and her brothers Bernard and Gerald Baughman. Survivors include her children: Sally (Denny) Carney of Des Moines, IA, Michelle Forest of Pacific Junction, IA, Mike (Suzanne) Forest of Columbia, MD, Linda (Paul) Cuthrell of Aurelia, IA, and Bruce (Mary) Forest of Park Hills, MO; her grandchildren: Alissa Carney, Josh Carney, Erin Forest, James Forest, Emilie Forest, Courtney (Jason) Rasmus, Katie Cuthrell, Casey Cuthrell, Bruce Forest, Jr., Nicholas Forest, Danielle Forest; great-grandchildren: Jacob Rasmus, Ellie Rasmus; and her brother, Willis 'Bill' Baughman of Ida Grove, IA.

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