Farewell, Betsy

Betsy Martin

Sometimes we don’t know what to say. Words, even if the right ones miraculously present themselves, are not enough. I'm trying in my inept way to tell you that I am sad. My friend, Betsy Martin, is gone. The whole village misses her. She was so much a part of Bay Village as are the oak trees and the flowering pears.

I met Betsy two decades ago while her husband, Dick, was busy building the Bay Village Foundation and I was a trustee. She was generous with her time and shared many ideas.

When we lost Dick a few years ago, Betsy and I met to discuss what she felt Dick would have wanted us to do.  Betsy told me that next to his family, he loved Bay Village and the University of Wisconsin. She said he wanted the way of life in Bay to continue long after they were gone. Dick, the founder of the Bay Village Foundation, wanted the capital to grow, so that all the wonderful volunteer projects that make Bay a special place to live had financial support from his Foundation.

We were gathered under the tent for the annual Bay Village Foundation program this Memorial Day when I looked for Betsy. She usually sat with me in the front because, as part of the program, Betsy presented Dick’s (T. Richard Martin) scholarship that she funded in honor of her late husband. But she wasn’t there this time. We learned of Betsy’s passing that same evening from lifelong friends of hers, Gary and Pam Ebert.

There will be a service for Betsy on Friday, July 22, 1 p.m. at Bay Presbyterian Church. Memorial donations may be made in her name to Lake Erie Nature & Science Center.

She will be sadly missed by everyone in the village The legacy of the Martins will live on through the Bay Village Foundation, their everlasting gift to the city they loved.

Eileen Vernon

Trustee of The Bay Village Foundation. Retired lawyer. Resident of Bay Village Foundation for over 32 years.

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Volume 8, Issue 11, Posted 9:47 AM, 06.07.2016