Betty “Jean” Mitchell

Betty “Jean” Mitchell of Austin, passed away Friday, November 11, 2022. She was born March 21, 1932 in Littlefield, Texas to Oliver and Maggie Roberts. 
Jean graduated from Littlefield High School and then headed to Austin with one hundred dollars to attend the University of Texas, where she applied her thirst for knowledge and graduated with a BBA degree in International Trade. She was a member in the honorary society Beta Gamma Sigma.
Her appreciation for other cultures began as she traveled the globe – Europe, Asia, North Africa, the Middle East and Central America. She saw the lights of Paris, walked the Great Wall of China, floated down the Ganges River, rode a camel in the Sahara Desert, flew in a light plane over the Himalayas in Nepal, and watched the sun set over the sea on the Greek island of Santorini. Her greatest joy came with her Greek travels, where she traversed the entire mainland and fourteen islands during ten trips. She hiked in and out of the Grand Canyon and enjoyed hiking in the Davis mountains and Guadalupe mountains.
She blazed the trail for women, becoming the first female IRS revenue agent in the Austin district. She continued her studies, and twenty-five years after graduating from college she studied for and passed, in one sitting, the Certified Public Accountant examination.  She worked at the IRS for over 30 years and upon retirement began the next phase of her busy life. Jean volunteered at Lady Bird Johnson’s Wildflower Center, attended classes at the Jung Society, and became a Certified Master Gardener. She was also an avid reader and believed in exercising her body as well as her mind with daily walks and strength training.
In 2001, when she thought her life couldn’t get better, she met the love of her life, Don Kurtz, who became her life partner. They spent wonderful times together traveling, watching indie movies, and working New York Times crossword puzzles.
Jean is survived by Don, a brother Jerry Roberts and wife Anona of Littlefield, Texas and several nieces and nephews, great-nieces and nephews and great-great nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents, a sister Marcella Parker and a brother O.L. Roberts, Jr.
The family would like to express their gratitude to her caregiver Rechelle Lewis for her immeasurable love and compassion.
The family will honor her with a memorial tree planting at a later date.