Bettye “Pep” Pepper, 1945-2011
Longtime Dallas resident and my good friend Bettye “Pep” Pepper died this morning at Hearthstone Hospice in Irving following a courageous battle against cancer.
A memorial service and celebration of her life will be held tomorrow — Saturday, April 30 — at Joe’s/The Brick. Everyone who knew and loved her is invited to attend. Pep’s body will be returned to her hometown in Benton, Mississippi, where funeral services are pending.
Pepper worked many years as a flight attendant for Delta Airlines. She then worked several years as a bartender for Joe Elliott at Jugs, then later for Howard Okon at Joe’s Place. The last several years, she worked for Home Depot on Lemmon Avenue in Oak Lawn.
There are so many things to say about Pep that there’s no way to say it all here. She was a true Virgo: Ask her what time it was, and she would tell you how to make a clock. She held a treasure trove of trivia in her mind and loved to tell stories and recite poetry. She also loved to tinker with things, to take things apart when they were broken and try to fix them and put them back together. And a lot of the times, when she put them back together, they did work, even if she had parts left over. She had a great laugh, and an excellent sense of humor. Her favorite TV channel was PBS.
She was a true and loyal friend, fierce about standing up for the people she loved and the causes she believed in.
Pep loved her family more than anything, and there were so many friends she thought of as family. Rest in peace, Bettye Pepper. We will miss you very much.
you will be missed but God has a new Angel to watch all the people you love and that love you more!
I remember the first day I met Pepper at Joes….she was a great person, friend and one of the nicest people on this earth!! I will definitely miss you Pepper……God and the Heavens above have gained a true ANGEL…….
Very well written. Pepper touched the lives of many and will be missed by everyone of them including myself.
..or the time at Jugs she found a coffee mug with a chip on the brim. She refused to throw it away, convinced she could “just sand it down”..after all, it was still a good cup…lol.
My favorite memory of Pepper was at the bar when she went to hand me my change and bounced a quarter right down my shirt! She got so red faced and everytime I saw her after that, I handed her a quarter 🙂 her smile was so warm and she will be missed.
There is no greater a woman and a lover of life itselt than Bettye Pepper, Glitz -N-Glitter ofer Texas will nerver forget her great smile and enthusiastic way she made all of us feel when we would come into JUGS. I am saddened that I didn’t get to see her more. We all have touched each others lives in so many ways at so many different times in our lives that we must stay connected somehow and let each other know how we feel. Bill and I deeply love all the women of Jugs that has touched our lives and continue to do so to this day. We love you more than you know. Michael aka Miss Sable
There are many great memories of such a wonderful woman, Pepper you will be missed. Our paths shall cross again my friend I’ll cherish those memories until then.
We sure will miss Pepper! Such a sweet woman!
Peace, prayers and blessings to my friend Pepper’s familly and loved ones.. May the comfort of God help you during this difficult time. ♥ Her memory will always be with us. She was very special, and she will always have a special place in our lives. ♥
Ms Bettye was the sweetest, kindest lady I have ever known, in all our dealing at Home Depot, she always had a smile on her face, a twinkle in her eye and you could see the love she had for everyone she worked with, we shared a love of reading and would chat for hours over lunch about books, the best times with Ms Bettye was when I could make her laugh, so genuine, so kind hearted
Pepper was my friend and a big fan of my daughter Noelle. A few years ago, my daughter was diagnosed with a type of bone cancer and spent a lot of time at Children’s hospital. During those visits I would need a break and a place to relax and I found Jugs. Pepper was the first person I met, she made me feel like a sister and we laughed and became fast friends. And over the years of my daughter’s illness she looked after the both of us and made us feel welcomed in the community. I live in New Iberia, LA now but I still missed my Jugs family and now her. I am thankful to have known her and her love. I am now grateful now that she is looking down on my family and still taking care of us.
Bettye . You could light up a room with the bright smile and sparkle in your eye. It is obvious that you touch so many lives and were loved by so many people. My prayers and thoughts are with the Pepper family. I’ll truly miss you and see you on the other side.
I only knew Pepper for a short time but she absolutely touched my life. She was a resident of mine, but the first time I met her it was as if we were already great friends. I have to say I don’t know of many people who are so friendly and humble as Pepper. Before her illness we would say “Hello.” & “How u doin?” in passing with an occassional hug. 🙂 As she came closer to passing, I treasured our chats. Pepper was never into giving a cold handshake. Each time I saw her she opened her arms, embraced me & gave me a sweet kiss. I could never get away with a simple hug. That just wouldn’t do! But I can’t imagine Pepper being any other way…I would have loved to know her longer. I don’t believe Pepper became an Angel after she passed on…she was already an Angel here on Earth. Luv u Pepper…we all miss u. :'(
I saw pepper a few days before she crossed. My heart sank as i saw how her body had been ravaged. We were hugging and i thought how lucky i was to have her as a friend. I then realized how much she thought of me and i will carry that with me always, thinking perhaps im not worthy. What a blessing. Mankind has lost a friend.