Betty Denton Darden

Born in October 1929, Betty began life in the midst of the Depression. This was the first of many of the challenges she overcame in her lifetime. Her father left her mother to raise three children alone. She and her siblings, Corwin and June, each worked as teenagers to support the family. Betty rode the Atlanta streetcar across town to work in a dress shop. She graduated in the final graduating class of Girl’s High. The young women of Girl’s High went on to be college graduates and leaders in Atlanta in the mid to late 1900's. Betty’s early life included marriage and the birth of three children: Kimberly, David and Allen. Allen was born with severe disabilities at a time when parents of disabled children were encouraged to place their babies in institutions. Betty, however, brought Allen home and sought specialists in Atlanta and New York for interventions and therapies. Betty often said that these years with young children were the happiest of her life. Sadly, Allen died in a tragic accident. Following her divorce, Betty then went back into the workplace and began taking college classes while raising two teenagers. She learned photography/darkroom skills and became the PR director for a statewide association. She later worked as an administrative assistant in a large insurance agency and then as a legal secretary to the senior partner in a law firm. She also made time to work a side job in a catering business in order to save for retirement. She was able to save enough money to pay for nine years in assisted living facilities. Her life was far more than her accomplishments and her ability to weather very difficult challenges. Her greatest joy came from being a mother and a grandmother. Her face brightened anytime one of her children or grandchildren came through the door. She would challenge her grandchildren to passionate games of Rummikub. Betty was very active in Bible study and volunteering at Mt. Paran Church of God and Eastside Baptist Church. Betty loved to play cards in numerous card groups and enjoyed her membership in the Robin Street Biddies. In her later years she loved to read English mysteries, play Bingo, and watch game shows. She is survived by her daughter Kimberly (Joe), her son David (Lisa), her grandchildren Taylor, Emma, Sarah (Stephen) and Mark, and her great-grandson Carlos. Donations in her memory can be made to the Mt. Paran Church of God Counseling Ministry. Betty leaves a legacy of strength and grace. As a part of the Greatest Generation, she valued hard work, tenacity, and a firm sense of right and wrong. In looking back over her life in later years, she would marvel at how God had sustained her and blessed her. Her family grieves, but we know that her 94 years were fully lived and that she has been joyfully received by her Heavenly Father: “Well done, Betty. You fought the good fight, you finished the race and you kept the faith.”

Betty Denton Darden

October 26, 1929 - November 14, 2023