Faces in the Crowd – Hope Springs Eternal

“You always have to have hope. I do try to see the best in everyone and everything.”

Meet Betty Webber.

Betty was born in Antigonish County to a farming family that grew to include ten children. So it was not surprising that she was raised by her grandparents starting at the age of 2, which was commonplace back then. Her father died when she was only eleven and one of her older brothers became the bread winner. She attended school in Cape George until grade ten. It was a school that was predominantly Catholic and, as a member of the United Church, Betty enjoyed some unexpected perks. “During Lent, when the Catholic students were trotted off to do the Stations of the Cross, we non-Catholics got to go home early.”

These days, fruitcakes are made weeks and sometimes months before Christmas. Back then the delicious Christmas treat was prepared two days before the big day. This coincided with the sale of a cow so that the family could go to town and purchase sugar, flour and fruit, which were not everyday staples.

She fondly remembers the dances, especially the ones at Malignant Cove when she would dance the night away to the strains of the Royal Swingsters. One time, during Highland Games, she got to see the legendary Don Messer perform at Crystal Cliffs.

She met her future husband and the love of her life, Ralph Webber, at a hockey game. Ralph had impeccable taste and proposed to Betty on their second date a few weeks later.

When their son Andrew was around 8 months of age, he fell ill. The Webbers drove from Aspen to Dartmouth to stay with Ralph’s parents. When their child fell unconscious, they made a dash for the Children’s Hospital in Halifax. This was days before the opening of the Angus L. MacDonald bridge in 1955. Realizing the gravity of the situation, bridge workers allowed them to cross. Part way across, Betty looked in horror as her son’s skin had a greenish yellow hue. “Ralph, he’s dying.” Only then did they look up to see the lamp poles adorning the bridge with their eerie colours streaking into the rear seat of the car.

Her life as the wife of a United Church Minister was extremely busy, as she was expected to be the social convener for many church functions. Oh yes, she had six children under foot as well!  “I was so busy but looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing,” she says.

She tells the story of one Christmas when they were posted in St. John’s, Newfoundland. An odd looking Christmas present arrived in the mail. It was a red bag with a picture of Santa’s face on either side. Santa had his eyes covered on one side and open on the other. For two years, Betty toted this bag around St. John’s as her shopping bag. At a Christmas gathering some time later, she went in to use the neighbor’s washroom. And wouldn’t you know it, there was Santa looking at her. Her “shopping bag” (the exact replica), was in fact a toilet seat cover!

She is a student of politics and one could say that Betty has been “liberal minded” most of her life. She confesses that she has voted for just about everyone except the Rhinoceros Party.

She attributes her longevity to “choosing the right parents.” She has always been active physically and mentally and is one of the many bedrocks of St. James United Church in Antigonish. “I love the United Church. It’s constantly evolving and it is a church that is willing to try new things.”

Betty’s glass is always half full. Her church, and the community at large, is blessed to have this dynamo in their midst.