Reader’s Write … by Randy Speck

Betty Reneau is the great-granddaughter of Isaac Tipton Reneau, who was born on Wolf River in 1805. Early in life he had a thirst for knowledge and resolved to get an education. His pursuit led him to become a school teacher.
When he was twenty-five years old, he began teaching at Clear Fork School and became very successful, developing a reputation as the best English scholar in Southern Kentucky.
After teaching for some years, he decided to become a physician, and later a minister in the Christian church.
Like her great-grandfather and others in her family, Betty has always desired to be a servant of the community.
Early on she dedicated her entire life to service. In 1958, she graduated from the College of the Bible in Lexington as the only woman with a Bachelor of Divinity Degree in the field of religious education.
She was ordained to the Christian ministry on June 15, 1958 at Albany Christian Church, where she has been a member her entire life. Betty has always been very proud of her church and its history, which she has written.
After bible college, Betty’s first ministry in education was in El Dorado, Arkansas. Then, she was called as Minister of Christian Ed­ucation of the South Joplin Christian Church in Joplin, Missouri.
She served in other areas in the state of Missouri, but it wasn’t long until she made her way back home.
Betty said she would never teach, but her mother said she might need to, so Betty returned to school and obtained the requirements needed and for the next 28 years she taught school in Wayne and Cumberland counties.
Outside of her vocation, Betty has spent her entire life volunteering in countless ways throughout the community in areas such as the ministerial association, hospital and the historical society.
Betty was a charter member and the very first president of the Clinton County Cancer Society. In each endeavor she did great things and, if you know Betty, her loving, Christian heart has always been at the forefront of all of her great works.
Betty was born on May 22, 1933. She celebrated her 90th birthday on Sunday with a cake and lots of friends coming by to help her celebrate, including Albany Mayor Steve Lawson, who presented Betty with a key to the city and a certificate proclaiming May 22, 2023 as Betty Reneau Day.
Randy Speck
Read Randy Speck’s blog at randyspecktacular.com