Betty Gerard

February 23, 1925 - November 16, 2022

Betty Watkins Gerard died peacefully at her home of 61 years in Palo Alto, CA on November 16, 2022, at age 97. Born on February 23, 1925 in Seattle, WA, she was the only child of Flora and A.L. Watkins.

She and her former husband, the late Gary Gerard, had four children: Erica (Vin Di Bona), Annie (Gary McKee), Steven (Carol) and the late Kitty Sanford. She is also survived by four grandchildren: Jamie Goldstein, Ian McKee, Reid McKee (Julie), and Kuuleilani Sanford.

Betty was an accomplished writer and editor from early life. She graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from University of Washington (where she was the editor of the student humor magazine for two years), and then received a MS in journalism at Northwestern in 1948.

Betty’s career included public relations/writing positions at Westinghouse, Sunset Magazine and Raychem, culminating in 22 years as a writer and editor for Hewlett-Packard in Palo Alto. At HP, she managed a worldwide internal news service and wrote for Measure magazine before retiring in 1997.

Betty applied her public relations skills on behalf of numerous community organizations (among them World Affairs Council–Peninsula Chapter, Neighbors Abroad, Palo Alto Historical

Association, and League of Women Voters), producing newsletters and ads. She wrote and emailed press releases well into her 90s.

Betty’s interests included international travel, photography, investing, politics, and environmentalism. She was a co-founder of the Committee for Green Foothills in 1962, and volunteered for nine years in the local office of then-Senator Joe Simitian, helping tabulate his “There Oughta Be a Law” contest. A news junkie, voracious reader, and endlessly curious, she read five daily newspapers, at least one chapter a day of primarily non-fiction books, and audited many classes at Stanford.

A virtual memorial will be held on February 26, 2023 at 4:00 p.m. To register, visit: https://www.remember.lightenarrangements. com/memorial-webpage/ betty-watkins-gerard (or email bettygerardfarewell@ gmail.com for more information)