Mary Elizabeth Sweeney, 107, of Winfield, Kan., passed away Monday, April 2, 2018, at Cumbernauld Village.
Funeral services will be held Monday, April 9, 2018 at 10:00 A.M. at First Baptist Church in Winfield. Interment will be held that afternoon at 3:00 P.M. at the Alva City Cemetery in Alva, Oklahoma. A visitation will be held on Sunday afternoon from 2 to 5 P.M. at Miles Funeral Service. The family will greet visitors during this time.
A memorial has been established in Elizabeth’s name for First Baptist Church. Contributions may be made through the funeral home.
Born May 19, 1910 in Alva, Oklahoma, she was the daughter of Charles Orthello “Dick” and Bertha Matilda (Drollinger) Green. She graduated from Alva High School in 1926 and Northwestern State Teachers College of Alva in May of 1930 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Home Economics. She was a member of Alpha Sigma Alpha Sorority and the president of her chapter for two years. In 1930, she was a delegate to the national convention of Alpha Sigma Alpha in Swampscott, Massachusetts. She was also Pan Hellenic president her senior year. Elizabeth taught home economics, the first typing classes that were offered at Shattuck, Oklahoma High School, and business subjects from September of 1930 until May of 1938.
She was united in marriage to Fred Sweeney in Alva on July 14, 1938 and the couple made their home near Wellington, Kansas. Elizabeth taught two years of country grade school in District 90 and two years at Milan High School, where she taught home economics and business subjects. She returned to Alva with her son, Larry during WWII while Fred served in the US Navy Seabees. She returned to Shattuck High School and taught business subjects from September 1943 to May 1945 when Fred returned from the service. The family lived in Alva for four years before purchasing a motel in Fort Scott, Kansas in 1949. They operated the hotel for three years and moved to Winfield on July 31, 1952. When her son, Charles was eight years old, Elizabeth began a three-year duty as a Cub Scout den mother at the First Baptist Church’s Pack 315.
In February 1957, Elizabeth began teaching for the Department of Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs, at Chilocco Indian School in Chilocco, Oklahoma in the special Navajo program. She went from the special Navajo program to the home economics department and then to the academic department. While there, she earned a Master’s Degree in Secondary Education at Oklahoma University, and she was among the first selected for the merit teaching program at Chilocco. She taught at Chilocco until her retirement in May of 1975.
Elizabeth was active in several different organizations. She was a member of the Winfield Community Council, serving two years, 1983 to 1985 as president. She was a member of the Cowley County Home Economists, an organization of college home economics majors, and served as both president and secretary. She was a member of the Liberal Arts Study Club and served as president. Elizabeth was also a member of the American Association of University Women, William Newton Memorial Hospital Auxiliary sewing group and a member of various extension groups.
In 2006, Elizbeth was able to attend the 75th Anniversary Reunion of the first high school graduating class that she taught, at Shattuck, the Class of 1931. She and one of her former students were the only members of that class who were still living.
Church was always important to Elizabeth, since her baptism at the age of nine at First Baptist Church in Alva. In Winfield, she was a member of the First Baptist Church where she taught in the Sunday School Junior Department and the R.F.M. (Really Faithful Members) Women’s Bible Class for more than 35 years. She was a member of the Esther Circle and served as its leader. She also helped many years with Vacation Bible School and was a member of several boards and committees.
When the Laotian refugees came to Winfield, Elizabeth worked with several families, helping them with the English language and adjusting to American customs. She helped several families fulfill their citizenship requirements. She enjoyed sewing, knitting, crocheting, tatting and teaching others those skills.
Elizabeth’s family includes:
Her son: Charles Sweeney of Killeen, TX;
Her grandchildren: Charles Sweeney, II of Seattle, WA; Richard Buller of Jennings, LA; and
Her great grandson: Justin Patrick Sweeney of Seattle, WA.
In addition to her parents, Elizabeth was preceded in death by a son, Larry in 1983, her husband, Fred, in 1969 and two brothers and three sisters.