Shirley Beecher, 83, passed away October 3, 2019, in Lawrence, Kansas.

Shirley was born March 7, 1936, in Studley, Kansas, the daughter of Adolph and Regina (Billinger) Brungardt. She was the oldest of three children. During her childhood days, the family moved to Bogue, Kansas, where Shirley graduated from high school in 1954.

Following graduation, she moved to Denver, Colorado, where she graduated from business college. She married the love of her life, Norman Beecher, April 21, 1956 in Damar, Kansas. The couple moved to Great Bend where Norman was a front-end mechanic and Shirley a bookkeeper. In 1960, 1961 and 1962, she and Norman had three children: Jeff, Gina and Greg. During this time she was a very busy mom and homemaker.

In 1963, she and Norman moved to Hill City and opened “Beecher Sinclair” full-service gas station. Which they owned and operated until I-70 opened to the south, leaving Highway 24 less traveled and therefore less busy. She then continued her career as a bookkeeper working for several years in the private sector.

However, she spent the majority of her professional career in service of Hill City, Unified School District 281 as the secretary of Hill City High School. She loved the hustle and bustle of all the students’ activities. After serving there for many years, she moved to the district office and held the position of Clerk of the Board of Education until she retired July 1, 1999.

If you knew Shirley, you obviously knew she loved the color red, from her home décor to her favorite clothing and right down to those meticulously groomed fingernails! She enjoyed watching her favorite NFL teams, the Dallas Cowboys and the Kansas City Chiefs on Sundays.

Shirley was an active member of the Catholic Church and served on the parish council. She and Norman were also active with the Kansas Western Horseman’s Association. Norman and the three children, as young as

four and as old as fourteen, participated in horse shows for many years. Jeff, Gina, and Greg won many trophies during this time. Gina remembers going to church at 8:00 on Sunday mornings and then rushing home to make bologna sandwiches and packing a cooler of Shasta pop, while Jeff, Greg, and Norman groomed and loaded the horses in the trailer. The family also traveled to the state horse-shows for ten plus years winning many awards there, as well. Shirley was always there to cheer her husband and children on, but she was also an announcer, timer, and scorekeeper at many of these events.

As her children entered middle and high school, the horses took a back seat to sporting events in which her children were involved, including football, basketball, wrestling, track, and softball. She attended these activities faithfully.

Later, after her children graduated from high school, trade school, and college; she and Norman took advantage of some time to themselves. They were active in the Graham County Rodeo for over 25 years, in which Shirley did some announcing and time keeping at these annual rodeos. Additionally, she and Norman enjoyed playing darts, pitch, and attending wedding dances where Shirley loved to polka.

After Norman passed away in June of 2001, she and her girlfriends formed “The Garden Club.” She said they chose this name because they were all “blooming idiots.” The club gathered every Friday for fun and cheer.

She was a devoted wife, mother and doting grandmother and will be missed immensely.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Adolph and Regina; husband, Norman; sister, Connie and daughter-in-law, Peggy (Chick) Beecher, wife of Jeff.

She is survived by her brother Don, Solomon; children: Jeff Beecher, Lawrence, Gina Fischer, Kingman, Greg Beecher and wife Rhonda (Sauer) Beecher, Rose Hill; six grandchildren and one great granddaughter.

Click HERE for service details.