A very important woman in radio history and a big part of KOFO in their early days, has passed away. Jette Lee died Monday, October 31st, at the age of 88, at home with her family by her side. She graduated from Michigan Valley High School in 1951. She was a talented musician who played the piano and the accordion as well as being an incredible singer and yodeler. She was known as the Tumbleweed Sweetheart. In 1950, she became the first woman in Kansas to have her own radio program. She was a DJ and was the host of the Hillbilly Hayride on KOFO for over two years.
Jette was much more than that. She was a dedicated farmer, wife and mother of 7 children. She worked at Lamont Hill as a cook and the Hilltop Nursing Home as a Certified Medication Aide and was awarded the Kansas Nurses Aid of the Year in in 1992. Also very active in the community, she volunteered and performed at the Vassar Playhouse and was honored as the Mother of the Year in Osage County in 1990 and was the Grand Marshal of the 2011 Vassar Fun Fest. She also loved attending the buffalo round ups in South Dakota and went on annual bear hunts to Minnesota. She loved the Kansas City Royals, attending many ball games every year and Spring Training in Arizona.
Memorial services will be held for Jette Lee tomorrow morning, Saturday, November 5th at 11:00 at the Michigan Valley United Methodist Church. A visitation will be held tonight at 6:30 at the Feltner Funeral Home in Lyndon.
