CURRENT ADDRESS:
Betty(Lindsey)Holt
636 Forrest Hill Drive
West Helena AR 72390-2016
870-572-5238
Two weeks after our May 25th graduation, Charles and I were married. Bert Thomas, James
Thomas' brother performed the ceremony; it was the first marriage he performed and I guess it
took' because it lasted forty-four years.
We lived in Paragould that summer, then came back to
West Helena in the fall. He worked for a meat packing plant, worked for a car dealership as
service/parts manager, then for NAPA auto parts for the last twenty years. I went to work for the
Phillips County ASC office (Dept of Agriculture), was secretary at the local funeral home for
three years, came to work for the Housing Authority in 1968 and have been here since. I was
hired as secretary just after the first project of one hundred fifty apartments of low-income public
housing were opened. We built another one hundred units in 1971.
When the Executive Director
retired in 1983, the Board named me as the Director. Since then, we have done lots of renovation
and updating since so many families move in and out. This has been a very rewarding career,
especially when you know you have helped those who truly need help. Charles and I had three
girls Lisa lives in Pine Bluff, has a son, daughter, and grandson (that makes me great-
grandmother, doesn't it?); Judy lives here and is married to Mickey Lederman (Frances's
nephew), and has one son; Tracy lives in Jonesboro and has two daughters, one son, and a
grandson (great grandmother again).
Charles passed away in June, 2000 from cancer. He was
always my high school sweetheart, but life goes on and I have a pretty balanced life now with
work, family, friends, and church work. I am quite active at Second Baptist Church in West
Helena where I see Ann Lawhon Stevens three times a week. Took a cruise to the Caribbean in
January of last year and again this January with a group of friends and had a wonderful time. I,
too, have been blessed so far with good health; at least nothing major.
I look forward to
retirement one day; I think Joyce might teach me how to scrapbook as well as she can and many
days could be spent organizing all these pictures and clippings I seem to save.