Kansas Nebraska Convention of Southern Baptists (KNCSB)

Funeral recalls Viola Webb’s influence

Viola Webb served as executive director of Kansas-Nebraska Woman’s Missionary Union, retiring in 1982. After her retirement, she continued to lead an active life until her health began to decline in the mid-1990s. Here, she spoke during a missions hike at the 1987 KNCSB Royal Ambassador Congress at Webster Conference Center, Salina, Kan.

Kansas-Nebraska Southern Baptists gathered Saturday, Feb. 21, to pay a final tribute to Viola Webb.

Mrs. Webb died on Wednesday, Feb. 18, at age 95. She led Kansas-Nebraska Woman’s Missionary Union for 25 years, retiring in 1982. After her retirement, Kansas-Nebraska Southern Baptists named their annual missions offering in her honor.

The funeral was held at First Southern Baptist Church, Topeka, where Mrs. Webb was very active until her health began to decline in the mid-1990s. It recalled her passions—“Jesus and Diet Dr Pepper.”

“That little frail body that couldn’t keep up with her mind is now the recipient of a new body,” said Clark Johnson, First Southern’s pastor.

Johnson recalled how Mrs. Webb was the chairman of the pastor search committee that brought him to Topeka nearly 20 years ago. The committee went to Phoenix, where Johnson was serving at the time, to meet with him. Johnson told how he had never dealt with a woman as the chairman of a pastor search committee.

“We spoke, and she said, ‘When are you coming?’ I got the feeling she was telling me to come. When I got here, I realized she was right.”

Johnson continued, “She was always supportive of her pastor ... That’s always a joy to a pastor.”

R. Rex “Peck” Lindsay, KNCSB executive director, told about two of Mrs. Webb’s major contributions to Kansas-Nebraska Southern Baptists:

• After KNCSB acquired Webster Conference Center in the early 1980s, she organized Kansas-Nebraska women to lead the way in raising money to develop the facility. “Viola opened the way for us to develop a conference center.”
 
• The Kansas-Nebraska missions offering. When such an offering was proposed in the 1970s, Mrs. Webb said, “I’ll get the ladies and we’ll start it.” That offering was named in her honor after she retired.

Mrs. Webb’s influence spread nationally through her WMU work and internationally through her short-term mission trips. During her first trip abroad—to Switzerland in the late 1960s—she experienced the feeling of being a stranger in a foreign country. That led her to begin ministering to international students when she returned home.
Mary Jo Troughton, a past president of Kansas-Nebraska WMU, said Mrs. Webb was “revered” by women in national WMU. “She had the spirit we all admired. She mentored many of us as young women.”

Southern Baptist missionary Jon Sapp told how Mrs. Webb encouraged him and his wife, Priscilla, before they went to Africa nearly 30 years ago. The Sapps are on stateside assignment in Wichita, Kan., for the next year.

“We had a meal at her table right before we went to Africa,” Sapp recalled.

Memorials have been established with the Viola Webb Missions Offering and Webster Conference Center in care of the Kansas-Nebraska Convention of Southern Baptists. Make checks out to KNCSB and mail them to 5410 SW 7th St., Topeka, KS 66606. Designate checks for either VWMO or WCC, as you feel led to give.

Send your tribute to Mrs. Webb to Eva at KNCSB.

• Read Mrs. Webb’s obituary