Betty Humphreys, widow of Chief Warrant Officer 2 Benjamin K. Humphreys, talks with Col. Michael J. Taliento Jr. while visiting Camp Humphreys in March 2007. (Bob McElroy/U.S. Army)
Betty Nance Humphreys, of Fayetteville, N.C., the widow of Chief Warrant Officer 2 Benjamin Humphreys, for whom the largest overseas U.S. military base is named, died June 10 at age 93.
“It is with heavy hearts that we mourn the passing of Betty Nance Humphreys, a remarkable woman whose legacy is deeply intertwined with the very fabric of our garrison,” U.S. Army Col. Ryan K. Workman, commander of U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys, told Stars and Stripes by email Friday.
On her last visit to Camp Humphreys, South Korea, in March 2007, she planted a tree in memory of her late husband at the base of Beacon Hill at Memorial Park, according to a post Friday on the base’s official Facebook page.
“That tree stands as a living testament to their enduring love and commitment to our military family,” Workman said.
A plaque marks the tree at Memorial Park planted by Betty Nance Humphreys in memory of her husband at Camp Humphreys, South Korea. (Luis Garcia/Stars and Stripes)
Benjamin Humphreys was assigned to the 6th Transportation Company (Light Helicopter) at what was then called Sub-post K-6. Humphreys died Oct. 13, 1961, when his H-21 Shawnee helicopter developed mechanical trouble and crashed into a rice paddy near Osan, killing him and the seven soldiers he was transporting, according to the Facebook post.
The Army renamed the airfield Camp Humphreys in 1962. Today the base dubbed “the Army’s Home in Korea” is home to the U.S. Eighth Army, 2nd Infantry Division, U.S. Forces Korea, the Combined Command and the United Nations Command. The 2nd Aviation Combat Brigade is also stationed at Humphreys. The major headquarters relocated over several years from Yongsan Barracks in the heart of Seoul.
Camp Humphreys hosts a combined population of approximately 35,000 service members and Defense Department civilian employees, contractors and their families, and is expected to grow.
Betty Humphreys in November 2004 canceled a trip to Camp Humphreys due to an illness. She was scheduled to attend a ceremony honoring her husband’s memory.
“Mrs. Humphreys’ kindness, grace, and genuine care for our Soldiers and their families touched countless lives,” Workman said. “She understood the sacrifices made by our service members, having witnessed firsthand the courage and resilience required to serve a country far from home.”
She left an indelible mark on our community, and her unwavering support for the U.S. military will forever be remembered, he said.
According to her obituary in the Fayetteville Observer: “In her final days, she was joyful in knowing she would soon be reunited with the loved ones that she had missed for so long.”
She donated her remains to Duke University School of Medicine, according to the obituary.
In addition to her husband, Benjamin Kent Humphreys, she is preceded in death by her mother, Gladys Newberry Nance and father Benjamin Franklin Nance.
