Bernice (Lehman) Houghton was born to Ralph and Olive Lehman of McPherson, KS on October 19, 1929. She departed this life on Friday morning, March 31, 2017 in Beloit, KS. She was 87 years of age.
Bernice was the youngest of four girls and the daughter of a school teacher. The Lehman family also farmed and milked Jersey cows. Bernice’s earliest years were spent in Holland, KS and Manchester, KS. The family moved to Enterprise, KS during Bernice’s 4th grade year. She completed her elementary education in Pearl, and high school in Chapman, KS, becoming a proud member of the Chapman High School Class of 1947.
Bernice attended one year of college at Kansas State University, where she met Clifford Houghton. Clifford and Bernice married on November 7, 1948, and returned to the Houghton family ranch located south of Tipton. Four children were born to this union; Keith, Leon, Kathy and Patsy.
Bernice spent 41 years on the family ranch working side-by-side with Clifford. Together, they earned several awards for their work in agriculture, including being named members of Kansas State University’s Master Farmer-Homemaker Class of 1976. Clifford and Bernice were so appreciative of this honor. They looked forward to attending the annual Master Farmer-Homemaker reunion banquets in Manhattan.
Bernice was a community leader. A lifetime 4-H member herself, she was a long-time cooking and sewing project leader and community leader for the Tipton 4-H Club. She was a member of the Hunter United Methodist Church and taught Sunday School to its littlest members. She also worked polling stations for county, state and national elections, volunteered as a Pink Lady at the Mitchell County Hospital and worked as a hospice volunteer for many years.
In 1988, the Houghton family lost Clifford, and a year later Bernice moved from the ranch to Beloit. Prior to moving, Bernice worked as an aid at the nursing home in Osborne for three years, then transferred to Hilltop Lodge in Beloit to continue her work. Bernice joined the United Methodist Church of Beloit; was an active volunteer in the UMC ladies group and served as a caller to remind people of duties they had been assigned for each week’s church service. She continued this work even after moving into Hilltop Lodge. While in Beloit, Bernice also sponsored a young man from Haiti, Samuel Jean, providing him a home and guiding him through his high school years in Beloit, and graduation from Kansas State University. She also helped Sam successfully gain his American citizenship.
Bernice was preceded in death by her husband, parents, two sisters (Irene Lindholm and Doris Gough), four brothers-in-law (Van Anderson, Alfred Lindholm, Marvin Gough, and Reid Barnett), one great-grandson (Zachary Goodman) and a host of dear friends. Left to mourn her passing are her children; Keith Houghton and wife Debra of Tipton, KS, Leon Houghton of Lafayette, IN, Kathy Jensen and husband Steve of Olathe, KS, Patsy Houghton of McCook, NE, foster-son Samuel Jean and family of Homestead, FL; one sister, Dorothy Barnett of Atchison, KS; three sisters-in-law; Florence Anderson of Lake Havasu City, AZ, Lois Gillan and husband Dale of Tempe, AZ, Margaret Warren and husband Jim of Galva, KS; seven grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren, one great-great-grandchild and numerous nieces, nephews and their families.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, April 8th at 2 pm at the Beloit United Methodist Church. Memorial funds may be directed to the Beloit United Methodist Church, the Beloit Wellness Center or Mitchell County 4-H.