Alpha Delta Pi chapter
Her major was Mizzou was education and her specialty was physical education. After college graduation, she taught high school P.E. at Ritenour. She became Mrs. Harvey Becht on June 13, 1953 and they settled in Olivette, Missouri. Two daughters were born to the couple.
In 1971, she began working as an instructor at Washington University specializing in women’s health. While working on her master’s she discovered her passion – the history of the Olympics, especially the 1904 St. Louis Olympics. Becht earned a master’s at Washington University in 1979. She later taught at the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
This love of the the Olympics and the roles of women and St. Louis became a second career for her. Becht wrote articles about Olympic history, especially focusing on women and the St. Louis connection. She was in demand as a speaker and was called “one of the world’s outstanding women sportswriters and sports historians.”
The Women’s Self-Help Center in St. Louis named her its second Slats Award winner for continuing support of women in sports. The award was named for Rita “Slats” Meyer Moellering, who played with the Professional Women’s Baseball League from 1946-1949.
Becht left her collection of Olympic historical information to the State Historical Society of Missouri. The collection is about 10 cubic feet and includes correspondence, photographs, newspapers and lesson plans.
June Wuest Becht died on January 2, 2014 at the age of 84.
