Elizabeth H. "Betty" Ledyard

1924 - 2014

Elizabeth "Betty" H. Ledyard, 89, passed away Tuesday, June 17, 2014. Memorial service: 10:30 a.m. Monday at First Presbyterian Church, 1000 Penn St., Fort Worth. Memorials: In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to First Presbyterian Church or to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, 330 E. Fourth St., Suite 200, Fort Worth, Texas 76102. Betty was born July 3, 1924, to Virginia Conn and Swanson Hurt, in Carlsbad, N.M. After graduation from Texas Tech University, Betty accepted a position as a geologist for Texaco in Fort Worth. She was married to Paul Hoyt Ledyard, who preceded her in death in 1967. They had one child, Stephen Swanson Ledyard, who also predeceased her. Betty served as business manager and treasurer of Mid Continent Geophysical Co. She became the first executive vice president of the Sid W. Richardson Foundation. She later served as a senior development officer with TCU. She was a charter member of Leadership Fort Worth and served on the boards of many civic, cultural and social organizations. She chaired the board of Goodwill Industries and the Charitable Solicitation Commission for the city of Fort Worth. Betty was a lover of the arts. In particular, she supported the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Ballet Concerto, Jubilee Theater, Stage West Theatre and Piano Texas at TCU. She was a longtime parishioner of St. Stephen Presbyterian Church and subsequently of First Presbyterian Church of Fort Worth, where she served on the board of trustees, Mission and Stewardship Commissions and as a Bible teacher. She also served on the task force of Grace Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church (USA) for the Southlake new church development, as well as various commissions of Grace Presbytery. Sincere thanks are extended to the wonderful staff at Stonegate Nursing Center for their compassionate care of Betty during her residency there. Survivors: Sister, Virginia Hurt Benke and husband, Tom, of Cleburne; nieces, Emily Cook and husband, Brett, of Colorado Springs, Colo., Becky Lamb of Golden, Colo., and Ginna Benke of Bryan; nephews, Ted Benke and wife, Maureen, of Cleburne and Tim Benke and wife, Katie, of Aurora, Colo.; 13 grandnieces and grandnephews; and many dear friends.