Celebration of Betty

This video memorial was created for a celebration of the life of my Aunt Betty (Elizabeth) Marie Cohen who passed last year. It was shown along with a slideshow presentation that went into more explanation on the various photos. The video offers an impression from selected periods and events along with music from the era. It starts with Betty's grandmother in a picture taken in the 1880s and includes her parents, uncle and aunt.

Betty was born to Charles and Frances Davis in 1923, in Topeka, Kansas. Her brother Bill was three years older. During World War II, she was a statistician for the US military, working at military bases in Pennsylvania, Florida, and finally, at the China Lake Naval Ordnance Testing Station in California’s Mojave Desert. There she met her future husband, Nathan Cohen, then a photographer on the rocket testing ranges. Meanwhile her brother Bill had joined the U.S. Army, and was working on the then-secret project to develop and install radar to protect England.

In 1946, Betty and Nate were married in her parent's home in Wichita, Kansas. From China Lake, they came to UC Berkeley, where she worked as a secretary while he earned his M.A. During this time, their children, David and Deborah, were born. The moves the family made, from town to town, were all occasioned by Nate's career advancements, but along the way, Betty worked to pay the bills, involved herself in the community, and continually advanced her own education. Nate earned his doctorate from Oregon State, and then came to Modesto Junior College in 1954 as a biology instructor. The family moved to El Cerrito in 1963; Nate ran special programs at UC Berkeley Extension and Betty worked, again, as a secretary on campus.

Later, she enrolled at UC, graduating with a B.A. in History and a teaching credential. Betty taught at Oakland's Bella Vista Elementary School for 20 years. She was a dedicated and creative teacher who found great fulfillment and meaning in working with Oakland students. Nate and Betty moved back to Modesto in 1994, where Deborah, her husband, and their children resided, and where Betty volunteered in Deborah's classroom.

In 1996 Betty and Nate celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary at a family reunion in Asilomar, California. The family reunions occurred every three years, in the midwest, mountains, southwest and west coast.

Betty was a great lover of dogs, enjoyed the Modesto Symphony, and working in her garden. Betty moved to The Stratford at Beyer Park in 2006, where she received wonderful support. Betty was predeceased by her brother William R. Davis of Salina Kansas, and by her husband Nathan. She will be deeply missed by her son David Cohen of Oakland, her daughter Deborah, son-in-law Ed Buettner, and their daughter Andrea, of Modesto, her brother Ted Davis of Wichita, Kansas, and by her many nieces and nephews, friends and colleagues.

Contributions in her memory may be sent to: NorCal Retriever Rescue - 405 El Camino Real #420, Menlo Park, CA 94025 Southern Poverty Law, Teaching Tolerance - 400 Washington, Montgomery, AL 36104

A photo album of the celebration can be seen at the link.