Elizabeth Healy, who was commended for her Red Cross work and went on to a distinguished career at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Manhattan, died on March 17, 2022. She was 97.
Born in Chevy Chase, Maryland, in 1924, Betsy, as she was called, was the daughter of Elizabeth (Moore) and Thomas P. Healy. When she was 8, the family moved to Rye and she spent her childhood on Apawamis Avenue, followed by more than fifty years living in New York City and Blind Brook Lodge.
After graduating from the Rye Country Day School, she received a bachelor’s degree from Connecticut College for Women in 1946, and a Master of Science-Social Work from Fordham in 1959.
As a member of the Red Cross, she served oversees in both Army and Navy hospitals during the Korean Conflict receiving the Swedish Red Cross medal and a South Korean Presidential Unit Citation.
In 1955, Ms. Healy started working at St. Vincent’s Hospital in New York’s Greenwich Village. She became Director of Medical Social Work and helped St. Vincent’s become a leader in caring for AIDS patients in the region.
Upon her retirement in 1991, she became an active volunteer for SPRYE; a teacher of English as a Second Language; a nursing home ombudsman; and a hospice volunteer.
Known affectionately as Aunt Betsy to scores of her nieces’ and nephews’ friends, she will be remembered for her expansive memory and penchant for storytelling. Her longtime friends will never forget her striking good looks and kind soul.
She is survived by two nieces, Suzanne Healy of Aptos, Calif. and Renee Fill of New Canaan, Conn. and a nephew, David Healy of Richmond, Vt., as well as their spouses and children. She was predeceased by her brother, Thomas M. Healy; her sister-in-law, Edith Corten Healy; her nephew, Tommy Healy; and a grand-nephew, Paul Healy.
A celebration of her life will be held Saturday, March 26 at 10 a.m. at Church of the Resurrection. A reception will follow immediately afterwards at Shenorock Shore Club. A private burial is planned.
Contributions in Betsy Healy’s memory may be made to the Rye Free Reading Room.
