Betty Waring

Waring, Betty Ann Age 92, passed away surrounded by her loving family, on October 3 at St. Luke's Hospital after a short illness. She was born February 15, 1923 in Ironwood, MI, the youngest of 11 children of Paul and Mina (Lundsrud) Amundsen. She graduated from Gravaraet High School and attended Northern Michigan University, both in Marquette, MI, before joining the Cadet Nurse Corps in 1944. She graduated from St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Washington, DC, entered the Army Nurse Corps in 1945, and was stationed in Kyoto, Japan, where she met her future husband, Army Capt. Hampton Waring. They married on January 10, 1947 in his hometown of Summerville, SC, and lived in Charleston for a year before moving to Milwaukee, and later, Hales Corners, WI, where they lived for 57 years before moving to Waterford Senior Living, Waterford, WI. They had a daughter and son, and after the children were in school, Betty returned to nursing. She worked in a doctor's office and was a public health nurse before returning to school, graduating from UWM with a BSN in 1966, and Marquette University with a Masters in Nursing and Nursing Education in 1970. She was a Brownie and Girl Scout leader and camp nurse for Milwaukee Scout camps Melody Woods and Camp Alice Chester for five years in the late 1950's, and camp nurse for Bay Cliff Health Camp in Big Bay, MI for ten years in the 1960's. She then taught refresher courses for nurses returning to the profession at UW Extension in Milwaukee, and served as President of the Milwaukee District Nursing Assn., and its newsletter editor, for a year, until retiring from nursing in 1980. In the 1980's, she took up photography, and her photos illustrated a nursing textbook. A past president of the Photo Pictorialists of Milwaukee Camera Club, she enjoyed restoring old photos and taking new ones, favorite subjects being nature, landscapes, and her grandchildren. Betty loved her summers in their cottage on Lake Independence near Marquette, MI where she could spend time with her family. She enjoyed swimming, boating, and driftwooding on the lake during the day, and playing lively games of Scrabble in the evenings with her sisters. She became interested in the local history of the area and interviewed many local residents for the four books she wrote about Big Bay, MI on Lake Independence and the communities nearby. Survivors include Hampton Waring, her husband of 68 years; her daughter, Elizabeth (Walter) Noble, son, Hampton (Mary Beth) Waring; grandchildren, Christel Noble, Jay (Rhiannon) Noble, John Noble, Katherine Waring, and Joseph Waring; great-grandchildren, Kathrine, Mason and Addison Noble, and many nieces and nephews. Betty was preceded in death by her parents, eight sisters, two brothers, and grandson, Hampton Benjamin Waring. A family memorial service is planned for a later date, and burial will be in Summerville, SC. The family has suggested memorials to Bay Cliff Health Camp, PO Box 310, Big Bay, MI 49808.