Lillian May "Babe" Richardson was born September 5th, 1931, in Kimball, Nebraska to parents Paul and Mary Brown. She attended grade school in the rural Scottsbluff area and graduated from Scottsbluff High School in 1950.
After high school, Babe worked as a wrangler at the Wildcat Dude Ranch and hostess at Bernie’s Corral Restaurant in the Scottsbluff, NE area. She then moved to Ohio where she attended college and worked in Chicago as an airline ticket agent. Babe took flying lessons on a single engine tail dragger airplane while living in Ohio. Eventually, she moved back to Nebraska and met her future husband while working as a bank teller in Scottsbluff when a co-worker invited her to go out with a group of friends and set Babe up on a blind date.
In January of 1959, Babe was united in marriage to Robert (Bob) Richardson. To this union three sons were born, Don, Marvin and Robert
The couple lived on the family’s ranch northwest of Crawford until 1974 when they moved to a home in the city of Crawford. Babe worked as head of housekeeping for Fort Robinson and for many years at the Ponderosa Nursing Home in Crawford. She was very active in the community belonging to many clubs and organizations and was a staunch supporter of the Crawford Fire Department.
Babe was a member of the Crawford United Methodist Church (UNMC) and became a representative from the panhandle region of Nebraska for the United Methodist Nebraska conference. In her late 70’s she became a lay speaker with the UNMC and for multiple years served as pastor for the Harrison United Methodist Church and interim pastor at Crawford UNMC.
Babe loved to embroider and quilt, winning awards with her quilts. She was never without a camera, taking pictures of her family, friends and flower garden at every opportunity. She was an avid reader of mystery novels and enjoyed being part of the Crawford community. She was a devoted wife, mother, friend and grandmother.
Babe passed away on Monday February 27th, 2023, at the Brookstone Meadows Skilled Nursing Center in Elkhorn, Nebraska, surrounded by her sons. Preceding her in death were her husband Robert (Bob) Richardson, father Paul Brown, mother Mary Krieg, step father Marvin Nelson, sister Violet Becker and many close friends and relatives.
She is survived by her three sons and their families Don and Mary Ann Richardson (of Winton, North Carolina, Marvin and Margo Richardson (of Albuquerque, New Mexico) and Bob and Rhonda Richardson (of Omaha, Nebraska), grand children Andrew and Kaitlinn Richardson, step grandchildren Maria Sargent, Melissa Adams, Erin O’Reilly, Katie Britt, Carissa Lawson, Melissa Phillips, CJ Hines, and Shurri Marie.
Funeral services will be held Saturday, April 8th, at 11am at the Crawford United Methodist Church. Inurnment will follow at the Crawford cemetery.
Memorials may be made to the Crawford Fire Department and the Crawford United Methodist Church. Donations can be sent to Chamberlain Chapel, PO Box 970, Chadron, NE 69337.