- Date Of Birth: November 12, 1932
- Date Of Death: November 14, 2021
- State: Colorado
Elizabeth Adams Henderson, whose love of wildlife and the outdoors—explored on horseback and by foot throughout the wildlands of the American West—guided her life and inspired others, died peacefully on November 14, 2021, in Littleton, Colorado, surrounded by family. She was 89. Mrs. Henderson was known as Betty to her friends and family.
Betty was born on November 12, 1932, in Boston, Massachusetts. She was the daughter of Ernest Adelbert Adams, Jr. (1899-1981) and Madeleine Park Adams (1903-1991). Betty and her brothers grew up principally in Rochdale, Massachusetts, and she spent time as a little girl in Washington, DC, where her father served on the Woolen Board during World War II.
As a girl, Betty attended Cloudmarch, a summer camp for girls in Sheepscot, Maine. Betty’s parents later purchased Cloudmarch and Betty became the camp director. Throughout her life, Betty’s melodic singing of songs from her Cloudmarch days entertained many around countless campfires.
Betty graduated from The Baldwin School in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. She became an accomplished equestrian, earning ribbons at the Devon Horse Show. Heading back to Massachusetts, Betty earned a bachelor’s degree in botany at Smith College. After college, she taught at The Chapin School in New York City and at Concord Academy in Massachusetts.
In 1955, Betty married Herbert Janvier Henderson, a graduate of Princeton University and the Harvard Business School. The ceremony took place at St.
Betty and Hobey and their children lived in cities and towns across the country. From New York City and Chicago, to Los Angeles, Denver and Clemson, South Carolina. In 1978, they acquired Farvalley Ranch in Dubois, Wyoming, which served as the centerpoint of joyful family occasions for nearly 20 years, as well as many backpacking expeditions into the Wind River and Absaroka Mountains in northwest Wyoming. In 1995, Betty and Hobey retired to Cottonwood, Arizona, and in 2017 they moved to Loveland, Colorado, to be closer to family in the Denver area.
Betty engaged with many local communities where she lived. She was honored by the mayor of Clemson, South Carolina, as an honorary citizen for her work with the Clemson Area Youth Theater. Betty served as director of the High Country Senior Citizens Center in Dubois, Wyoming. In later years, Betty volunteered for the Verde Valley Caregivers in Cottonwood, Arizona.
Throughout her life, Betty was known as a kind, gracious and engaging lady. Her humor, complete with twinkling eyes and wry smile, is remembered by her family and her many friends from high school, college, and all the communities she touched throughout her life.
Betty was survived by her two brothers, Charles Hutchinson Park Adams and Ernest Robert Bruce Adams; husband Herbert Janvier Henderson and four children, Douglas Adams Henderson, William Haywood Henderson, Elizabeth Janvier Zimpel, and Charles Park Henderson; five grandchildren, Nathan Adams Henderson, Bailey Elizabeth Henderson, Katherine Janvier Smith, John William Zimpel, and Elizabeth Christine Zimpel; and one great grandchild, John Matthew Zimpel.
