January 24, 1927 - August 25, 2023

In Loving Memory ~

Betty passed away peacefully at the age of 96, on August 25, 2023, with her family by her side. She chose MAID as her way of passing.

Betty was born to Hubert and Nell White on January 24, 1927, in Vancouver, B.C., where she lived until moving to Bevan as a young child. There she made many lifelong friends. Later, her family moved from Bevan to Courtenay, and when old enough, Betty worked for Canada Post, sorting mail, and making deliveries in her Model A.

After World War II, she met the love of her life, Arthur Joseph Annand. They married and lived the rest of their lives in Courtenay. Betty was always busy both at home raising her two children, Nancy and Danny, and in the community taking an active role in a wide range of activities.

As a member of the Courtenay United Church, Betty led a CGIT group of girls and later served as a church elder. She was a long-serving Volunteer in the Hospital Ladies Auxiliary at St. Joseph's Hospital.

For many years, one of her greatest joys was writing, directing, and acting in plays and skits with the Evergreen Seniors Drama group. The drama group presented many plays and skits in the Comox Valley and competed in the provincial drama festival several times. The day of her stroke in June, she was dressed and ready to head off to a drama meeting.

Betty wrote eight published books of different genres, including autobiography, history, historical fiction, screenplay and murder mystery. She was continually researching new material and working on intriguing characters for her stories and was never happier than when starting a new tale.

Betty played the ukulele with the Evergreen Band and The Lost Chords until her fingers became too arthritic, and then she began to learn to play the drums with both bands as well as the Indigenous Women's Sharing Society. She loved going to the casino with friends and winning just enough to pay for lunch. She also tried her hand at oil painting and sculpting and potting in clay.

Art, Betty and their best friends, John and Irene, picked salal together to make enough money to travel the world. The four of them visited Russia, Spain, Portugal, England, Scotland, Mexico, Guatemala, and Costa Rica, and they also traveled across Canada together.

They had many road trips in their motor home, Peace and Quiet, with Lloyd and Flo, John and Irene and their children and grandchildren. Betty loved to travel to distant places, such as Costa Rica, Great Britain, Tasmania, New Zealand, Cuba, Mexico, Hawaii, and the Caribbean but was also happy to go to the lake fishing, which was Art's favourite destination.

Betty will be remembered by her family and friends for her huge Christmas and Boxing Day dinners, nightly card games, her endless bag of dress-up clothes, evenings of skits and charades, bowling, fishing, boating, and wonderful birthday parties. Her home was as welcoming and cheerful as her heart.

Betty is the last of her generation in both the White and Annand families, and she keenly felt the loss of her brothers and sisters and their spouses, and her Annand brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law. She lost her beloved husband, Arthur, in 2002.

Betty is survived by her daughter, Nancy (Mike), her son, Danny (Karen), her granddaughters Jay (Lance), Anita (Jamie), Michelle (Shane), Angie (Greg, deceased), Katie (Noel). She also leaves behind many great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.

In any life that spanned ninety-six years, there will be too many generous friends and family to be thanked personally. So to all of the friends who brought joy and laughter into Betty's heart or helped her in any circumstance, or shared her work and passion, thank you so very much.

Her family will all miss their mom's love, her enthusiasm and energy, her very active imagination, her mentoring and her wonderful hugs and smile. Thanks so much, Mom!

A Celebration of Life will be held for Betty on Sunday, October 15, at the Florence Filberg Centre conference hall from 2:00 p.m. until 4:00 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Betty's memory to your charity of choice.