MRS. BETTY JEAN APPLEBY

Auntie, you were such an inspiration to all. I remember when I was younger and would visit Detroit from Chicago, you would always encourage me and love on me with that beautiful smile. Heaven has gained an Angel. Love you always. Your niece, Darlene Swayzer-Parks

Betty and I have shared so many beautiful experiences together. I will miss the long late conversations about Everything, our shared Spiritual journeys, our advocacy work with RESULTS to end poverty in the world, and your moral support in those times of challenge. I will miss your physical presence Betty, but your beautiful Spirit will live on in my heart and the hearts of all of us. Well done our Good & Faithful servant. Rest In Power.

I send my condolences to the family of Betty Appleby and her son, Anthony. Betty and I have been friends for decades. I am sharing some memories at request of he son who would like others to know more details about her mother's life and activities.

Betty and I met while working with Detroit City Council President Erma Henderson. Betty was her administrative assistant and I co-chaired her economic task force of the Women's Conference of Concerns. We worked together to promote the programs of Ms Henderson and often appeared at public gatherings on her behalf. When I left Detroit to assume a career as an independent researcher for specialized agencies of the United Nations, I gave Betty and her son, Anthony, my apartment in Detroit where she lived for years.

As supporters of Ms. Henderson, Betty and I were asked to coordinate a Michigan delegation of elected officials to join Ms Henderson at the Third World Conference on Women in Nairobi in 1985 where the Non-governmental Organization Forum was headed by our friend fDr. Lucille Mair (Secretary-General of the Second World Conference).

Keeping a delegation of more than forty elected officials was a challenging task which Betty and I shared with success. While officials voiced their opposition to policies of the Reagan administration, Betty and I travelled to the north of Kenya where we joined others in planting trees to stop the encroachment of the Sahara Desert to preserve land for food production. The organizer of this tree-planting was imprisoned over decades until 2004 when she won the Nobel Peace Prize for this activity. Children's books now promote her tree planting activities. Betty and I later later learned this Michigan delegation stopped Maurine Reagan from assuming the international leadership of the women's movement.. Much later, Betty was asked to finalize a book focused on the life of Ms Erma Henderson.

After her return from living in South Africa, Betty organized New Dawn and joined Linked-In where she drew hundreds of followers from around the country. Each year during the anniversary of New Dawn, it was impossible to send her an e-mail message for weeks as messages of celebration filled her in-box. More recently, Betty was living on he own in a suburb of Detroit when two years ago, she began dialysis, described elsewhere herein.

Three months ago, Betty was 'swept up' into taking advantage of 'free' vaccination offered in her building. She has little pain in her arm after the first shot; but, the second was very different leading to dizziness, memory loss and hospitalization at Beaumont Hospital at the end of one month. It was apparent she was experiencing small blood clots which continued during the following two months. At one point, she was put on a ventilator but when removed to avoid development of pneumonia, she was able to breath on her own.. Her situation went up-and-down over the next two months. Just when it was thought she was improving, she was gone. It is my opinion, her experience deserves review in light of its potential side-effect of a vaccine which is similar to those experienced by other women.

Betty was my friend, a good friend who always offered me support and encouraged my connection with others for support, as when I was subjected to a bulldozing land-grab. I am so sad and know I share this sadness with many people who knew and loved Betty.

Shirley Nuss, Ph.D.
[email protected]

Sending my sincere condolences to Betty’s family and friends. I met Betty several years ago and decided to give her a call just to see how she was doing a couple years ago not too long after she had to have dialysis treatments 3 times a week. We became good friends as I offered to take her to her appointments. She was such a classy and professional woman at all times. We both loved clothes and shopping. I will miss her very much. I am still so saddened by her passing. Wishing nothing but peace, love and comfort to her son, Anthony and the rest of the family.