Betty Lee Townsend Strickland, 78, of Montgomery , formerly of Brownwood , passed away on Tuesday, February 5, 2013, at an assisted living facility in Montgomery Texas .

A gathering of friends and family will be held from 2 to 4 PM on Saturday, February 9, in the Netherton Funeral Home Chapel.

Betty Lee Whitlock was born on March 23, 1934, in Paint Rock Texas to Lee Roy Whitlock and Eunice Joiner Whitlock.  She grew up and attended school in Paint Rock and went on to be a school teacher. She taught for many years alongside her husband, Dale Townsend before she retired.

Betty had lived in Brownwood for the last 13 years, moving here from Calvert Texas . She loved playing Bingo and bowling and had a great love of flowers. Some would even say she was a “flower fanatic”

Betty is survived by her children, Guy Hal Townsend and wife, Janet, of Brownwood and Gary Dale Townsend and wife, Barbara, of Huntsville ; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She is also survived by her siblings, James Whitlock, Allen Whitlock and Joe Whitlock, all of San Angelo, and Don Whitlock, Helen Pope and Judy Whitley, all of Brownwood, as well as several nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Lee Roy and Eunice Whitlock; husbands, Dale Townsend and John Strickland; and a brother, Charles Whitlock.

Services for Betty Lee Townsend Strickland are under the direction of Netherton Funeral Home.

Family and friends are invited to sign the online guestbook at www.nethertonfuenralhome.com