Butler County KS Archives Obituaries.....Bowlus, Kathryn Ann December 1963 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ks/ksfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Peggy Luce pegsue59@cox.net March 15, 2007, 4:31 pm The El Dorado Times, December 21, 1963 The El Dorado Times December 21, 1963 KATHRYN ANN BOWLUS DIES IN OKLAHOMA HOSPITAL INJURIES FATAL TO EL DORADO GIRL Kathryn Ann Bowlus, 15 year old El Dorado High School sophomore, who was critically injured Friday in a car truck crash near Wynne Wood, Okla., died shortly before 11 a.m. today at Roberson-Shirley-Simmering Hospital in Wynne Wood. The death of Miss Bowlus, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Burton R. Bowlus, 301 North Orchard was the third in the tragedy which struck when a group of high school students was en route to Mexico for a Christmas vacation. It creates a wave of sorrow in this town, where the popular young El Doradoan was active in school and church affairs. Miss Bowlus died of head, chest and kidney injuries. Funeral arrangements, which are pending, will be announced by the Kirby Funeral Home. Two other students, Pamela Ann Harrell, 15 and Richard N. Langford, 17, both of Wichita, were killed in the accident which occurred on U.S. Highway 77 near Wynne Wood. Three other Wichitans were injured. Donna Jean Kogler, 15, was reported in grave condition at the hospital in Wynne Wood. She suffered severe chest injuries and had not recovered consciousness Friday night. Also injured in the car were Beth Ann Hembree, 16, and Richard Edward Barnes, 22 year old instructor of Spanish at Wichita Heights High School. Miss Hembree, who suffered a fractured pelvis, and Barnes, who sustained broken ribs, were also hospitalized at Wynne Wood. The car driven by Barnes and also occupied by the five students, went out of control on a rain-slick bridge. The auto slid into the opposite lane and was struck broadside by a pickup truck driven by Lee Roy Layton, 56, of Wynne Wood. He was admitted to the hospital in Wynne Wood with head injuries and multiple cuts, and was reported in serious condition. Another El Dorado High School student, Miss Tomi Jo Lee, 15 year old daughter of Mrs. Thelma lee, 1223 West Olive was a passenger in another of the automobiles in the three car caravan. The car involved in the accident with the truck was the last vehicle in the caravan, headed for Mexico on a sight seeing tour for first and second year Spanish students. A Wichita North High School student was included. The auto in which the victims were riding skidded more than 250 feet before the crash. Its right side was crumpled. The accident occurred at about 10 a.m. according to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. Wynne Wood is located about 60 miles south of Oklahoma City, where the group of 14 Wichita and El Dorado High school students had spent Thursday night. With instructors and chaperones, the group had planned to stay Friday night in the Dallas, Texas and arrive this weekend in Monterrey, Mexico. The trip was canceled, and the other students and instructors were expected to remain at Wynne Wood until the weekend or until highway conditions improved. Willis Harrell, father of Pamela Harrell, suffered a heart attack at his home when he learned that his daughter had been killed. Harrell and his wife, who suffered shock, were hospitalized at Wichita. Mr. and Mrs. Bowlus, upon learning of the accident, left Friday for Oklahoma. Miss Bowlus was an El Dorado High School debater and was active in school organiziations. She was also an active member of the United Presbyterian Youth of the First United Presbyterian Church. She was a Girl Scout and played the piano. Survivors in addition to her parents, include her brother, Jim, a freshman student at the University of Kansas, Lawrence. The El Dorado Times December 26, 1963 DEATH OF KATHY BOWLUS BLOW TO MANY FRIENDS All El Dorado was saddened Saturday when news came that Kathy Bowlus, fifteen- year-old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Burton R. Bowlus, 301 North Orchard, a sophomore in El Dorado High School, had died that morning in the Roberson- Shirley Simmering hospital at Wynne Wood, Okla., where she and other students had been hospitalized since Friday when the car in which they were riding went out of control on a rain-slick bridge. She did not regain consciousness after the accident. Kathy and Miss Tomi Lee, 1223 West Olive, El Dorado and several students of Spanish in Wichita's West Heights high school were enroute to Mexico on a holiday vacation tour. Miss Lee, riding in another of the three cars in the caravan, was not injured. After the accident the tour was cancelled. The young Wichita students sustained fatal injuries in the crash Pamela Harrell, 15, and Richard Langford, 17. Another of the students, Donna Jean Kogler, 15, of Wichita still was listed as critical at the hospital in Wynne Wood Monday night. Richard Barnes, an instructor at Wichita Heights and driver of the car, was released from the hospital Monday, and Beth Hembree, 16, also of Wichita was improving in Wesley Hospital. Kathy's warm gracious personality and her high ideas endeared her to her classmates and other associates. Her friends recall that she was thoughtful of others, never failing to have a word of special praise for those who attained scholastic or other honors, or a word of encouragement for those whose efforts did not achieve the highest goal. She was a member of the First United Presbyterian church and a regular attendant at the Sunday School. Her affiliations also included the Debate club, Pep club, Kayettes, and Rainbow Girls. Born in El Dorado on October 27, 1948, Kathy had lived here all her life, a beloved daughter, sister and friend. Mrs. Bowlus, Kathy's mother, who is studying for her Master's degree in University of Wichita, has been doing practice teaching in the Wichita Heights School. She is the former Margaret Corson. In addition to her parents, Kathy is survived by her brother, Jim Bowlus, a freshman in University of Kansas at Lawrence; and her grandmothers, Mrs. B. J. Bowlus of Coffeyville and Mrs. H. R. Corson, who lives at 409 North Taylor in El Dorado. Rites were held at 10 o'clock Monday morning at the Kirby Funeral Home, the Rev. James Fulton Clark, minister of the First United Presbyterian church, officiating. Mrs. Charles E. Heilmann sang The Lord's Prayer, and Mrs. L. W. Newcomer as accompanist. The casket bearers were Judge Charles E. Heilmann, K. W. Green, Stanley Young, Charles W. Cooke, Richard Miller, and Kenneth Spring. Beginning at 4 o'clock in the afternoon services were held in the Highland Cementary in Iola where interment was made. The El Dorado Times December 24, 1963 SAY A PRAYER FOR KATHY Kathy was fifteen, Kathy looked to the future, Kathy was full of enthusiasm, Kathy was the sparkle in our lives, Kathy was the apple of our eye. Today she is gone and we miss her. We do not understand why the Lord chose to take her from this earth. But we are sure there is a divine reason and there is a good and substantial reason. We live but a few years on this earth whether we live a full quota of life or only for a few youthful years. Life does have meaning and we must make the best use of our allotted time. Perhaps our only function is to encourage others to lead better, purer lives. We ourselves may be only stepping stones to fulfill the lives of others. Perhaps the tragedy of Kathy and many other Kathy's is to make us aware of our own shortcomings to strengthen our faith. Then: Please say a quiet prayer for Kathy. If we remember her unblemished youth, we are in her debt as an inspiration to better our lives. By her Mother and Father (Mr. and Mrs. Burton R. Bowlus) This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/ksfiles/ File size: 8.1 Kb