Betty Boyd
July 1, 1923 ~ August 18, 2014
Our mother Betty Boyd was born in San Francisco, California on July 1, 1923, and died at Columbus House, Vancouver, B.C., on August 18, 2014, at the age of 91. Betty is survived by her four children: Neil (Isabel Otter) of Bowen Island, B.C.; Margaret, of Guelph, Ontario; Colin (Barbara McGeough) of Vancouver, B.C.; Kirstin of Edmonton, Alberta; by seven grandchildren: Jacob Boyd, Kieran Boyd, Marianne Clark, Jeremy Clark, Madeline Clark, Sarah Dagg, and Chris Otter, and by three great-grandchildren, She is also survived by her former husband, Bill Boyd, of Fontainebleau, France, and her nephews, Warren Franklin (Mary Pottier) of Bowen Island, B.C., and John Franklin of Berkeley, California. She was predeceased by her fraternal twin, Virginia Franklin.
For almost all her life Betty was a teacher, both in the secondary school system in Ontario, and, for a much longer period, on the tennis courts of San Francisco, Berkeley, Deep River, Saltspring Island, and Vancouver. She would teach tennis on a volunteer basis to anyone of any age who wanted to play the game. Betty was also an accomplished tennis player herself, ranked as a junior in California, and the winner of the Canadian Open Women’s Singles Championship, in the 40+ category, in 1965.
After graduating with a Msc. from the University of California at Berkeley in 1950, she moved with her husband Bill to Deep River, Ontario, where they raised the four of us. In 1972 McGraw-Hill Ryerson published her book, Thinking about Inquiry, an introduction to critical thinking in the classroom. During that time Betty re-located to Ottawa and Toronto, ultimately retiring from teaching in the mid 1980s and moving to Saltspring Island in British Columbia. From Saltspring she moved to Vancouver, and ultimately to Columbus Lodge in Vancouver, where for the last year of her life she was treated with a wonderful compassion and kindness.
She was a sweet woman who was curious about many things — how to live more effectively in the present, how to improve her topspin forehand, and how to help her children and grandchildren live enjoyable and fulfilling lives.
She was an inspiration, always urging us to find work that we loved, and taking great pride in our accomplishments. We are very sad that she is no longer in our lives, but we are grateful for her warmth and kindness and can only hope that these attributes have helped us to be better people. Donations can be made in her memory to Columbus House, or to a charity of your choice. A memorial celebration of her life will be held in Vancouver on October 4th. For more information about this celebration, please contact Colin Boyd, 976 23rd Avenue East, Vancouver, B.C. V5V 1Y5, email boydco@telus.net, or Neil Boyd, 1273 Hikers Trail, Bowen Island, B.C. V0N 1G2, email nboyd@sfu.ca.