Elizabeth “Betty” (Bilderback) Pruett, of Atchison, KS, was born July 11, 1938, in Leavenworth, KS, to James V. and Mildred Christian Bilderback. She died peacefully on February 25, 2026. At a young age, the family returned to Atchison where Betty graduated from Atchison High in 1956. At the age of 48, she graduated with honors from Emporia State University.
She worked at Ferrell Gas for 25 years, the Atchison City Water Works, Department of the Army at Ft. Leavenworth, and the State of Kansas at the Youth Center.
She married Dale Harness and they were later divorced. She married William Henry Pruett in 1968. Henry preceded her in death on October 1, 1998. Her parents and brothers, Larry Bilderback and Charles “Chuck” Bilderback, and James Bilderback, also preceded her in death. She was a charter member of Atchison County Genealogy Society, the Jefferson County Genealogy Society, Atchison County Historical Society, and a lifetime member of Friends of the Atchison Library.
Her hobbies were quilting, string crochet, reading and email friends.
Survivors include a son, Dennis Harness, and several nieces and nephews.
Private services were held and Betty was laid to rest at the Leavenworth National Cemetery. Service care entrusted to the Arensberg-Pruett Funeral Home.
