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Beverly Jean Dye

Beverly Jean Dye

Beverly Jean Dye

Beverly Jean Dye, age 85 passed away on Monday, March 13, 2023. Beverly was born on August 10, 1937, at her maternal grandparents home in Winamac, Indiana. She grew up in North Judson, Indiana.

After graduation,
Beverly attended the Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in Gary, Indiana, on a full scholarship from the 40&8 organization. She worked for two years on the medical ward before joining the United States Air Force Nurse Corps. After basic training at Gunter ARB, Alabama, she was assigned to Sheppard AFB, Texas, followed by Ramey AFB, Puerto Rico, just in time for the Cuban Missile Crisis. She returned stateside to Maxwell AFB, Alabama. She attended night classes until she was selected to attend the University of Wisconsin to complete her BSN degree. She volunteered for Vietnam and was stationed at the 12th USAF Hospital, Cam Rahn Bay from 1968-1969. This was the largest in-country hospital, and she considered it the best year of her professional career.

After serving the following year at Nellis AFB, Nevada, she was selected as one of two nurses to attend the one-year Environmental Health Residency course at the School of Aerospace Medicine, Brooks AFB, Texas. This course originally was the Aerospace Nursing Residency which trained nurses to be at the ready to attend to the astronauts upon landing in the Atlantic Ocean. With the downgrading of NASA, this need was no longer relevant, so it was revised for nurses to be utilized in Flight Medicine, Occupational Health, and Military Public Health. After graduation, she served as Chief, Environmental Health Services in Hurlburt Field, Florida, Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, and Offutt AFB, Nebraska. At Offutt, she also served as Consultant to the Strategic Air Command Surgeon General. Her final assignment before retirement in 1984 was to the Occupational Health and Environmental Health Laboratory at Brooks AFB, Texas, as Chief, Occupational Health where her branch developed a standardized occupational health program for the Air Force.

Following retirement in San Antonio, she learned to hand carve many versions of Santa Claus and to chip carve crosses, all becoming gifts to her family and friends. In 2000, she moved to Sun City, Georgetown, Texas, where she loved playing golf, especially with the WGA 9 Hole group. Everyone who knew “the Colonel” knew Tuesday was always golf day. She served her church as a vestry member twice, a member on the altar guild, and Eucharistic visitor for many years.

Survivors include brother, Fred and wife Kathy of Sellersburg, Indiana; sister, Anne Boggess and husband Ed of Georgetown, Texas; and sister-in-law, Carol of Indianapolis, Indiana and her beloved Tibetan Spaniel Katy. 

Colonel Dye was preceded in death by her parents Lawrence E. Dye and Margaret V. (Teske) Dye, of Medaryville, Indiana; and her brother, George of Indianapolis. Also waiting at the Rainbow Bridge are Sugar, Hailey, Summer, Mandy, Dustin, and Wendy.

Beverly’s memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, March 28, 2023, at Grace Episcopal Church, West Campus, located at 4402 DB Wood Road, Suite 150, Georgetown, Texas, 78628. Internment service will follow at Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery, 11463 Texas Highway 195, Killeen, Texas, 76542 at 1 p.m. where full Air Force honors will be conducted.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested memorials be given in Bev’s memory to Grace Episcopal Church, 1314 East University Avenue, Georgetown, Texas, 78626, or the Cocker Spaniel Rescue of Austin at www.AustinCockerRescue.org.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.cookwaldendavisfuneralhome.com for the Dye family.