- Date Of Birth: January 18, 1934
- Date Of Death: August 16, 2021
- City: Savannah
- State: Georgia
Elizabeth Ann “Betty” McInnis, 87, of Palatka, passed away Monday, August 16, 2021, at Osceola Regional Hospital following a brief illness.
Betty was born in Savannah, GA, and the details of her beginning are still a mystery. At just about a week old, she was found at the foot of an oak tree on Victory Lane. Thankfully, she was found and taken to the closest hospital. She grew up in Ocala, FL, and after several years in the Navy, settled in Palatka in 1958. In her early years, Betty had a beautiful voice, performing locally in Ocala and even earning the opportunity to sing with The Tommy Dorsey Band at Hershey Park, PA. As a teenager, Betty was a swimmer/diver at Silver Springs and could be spotted at the attraction and in pre-movie newsreels of the time. After high school, on a “dare with some girlfriends”, Betty joined the U.S. Navy and served as a Corpsman, stationed in Oceanside, CA during the Korean War.
In Palatka, Betty began her work career in numerous roles including early morning newspaper delivery, hostessing at the Hart Point Grill, and eventually landed at Hudson Pulp & Paper Corp./Georgia-Pacific Corporation. She held numerous roles over her 35+ year career including keypunch, maintenance department clerk, and Kraft Paper Machines planning and scheduling. Betty spent most of her Hudson/GP career and made her mark as the Administrative Assistant to the mill manager until June 1983. In July 1983, she became the Salaried Payroll Supervisor for the Southern Pulp & Paper Division which included Palatka and three other paper mills. She was known for her great sense of humor, gentle and caring spirit, amazing organizational skills, and was a force to be reckoned with if you disappointed her in any way. She worked in this role until her retirement in 1996.
She was a member of St. James United Methodist Church and pre-pandemic, she was very active in her Circle group and on the church maintenance committee. Betty also served for several years on the advisory board for the Arc of Putnam County and the Putnam County Gator Club and volunteered with the Bread of Life of Palatka. She loved her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren with all her heart and spent countless hours supporting and cheering them on in school, sports, music, and other life events. She was also known as the instigator for nonsense, silliness, and rambunctious behavior with her “grands” and we all loved that about her.
She shared her passion for golf with her husband Julian, who accompanied her for 50-plus years as a spectator at the Master’s Golf Tournament in Augusta, GA. Music remained a big part of her life as a supporter of Suncoast Sound Drum & Bugle Corps out of Clearwater. Betty and Julian spent countless weekends working the “chuck wagon” and traveling with the corps. Betty was also known for her world-famous fried chicken as well as ‘Betty Bars’ which were enjoyed during all tailgating events both pre and post-game for all Florida Gator football games.
Betty loved Christmas time and especially loved sharing the Charlie Brown Christmas gang for the holidays. She was always a friend to those running for local offices as she opened her lawn to numerous candidates over the years. She was sweet but competitive when playing the Mexican Train domino game with her best girlfriends and recently enjoyed one more day of play with them. Betty and Julian were also known for their sweet dance moves and brought home a dance trophy or two with their jitterbug skills. Betty will always be remembered for her fiery yet gentle spirit, her passion for helping others, and her great big heart that loved and cherished her family and friends.
She was preceded in death by her husband of 50 years, Julian Scaffe McInnis, mother, Ella Bell Graham, brother Arte Graham (Grace), sister Juanita “Robbie” Adams (Russ), sister Jane Mullis (Joe), mother- and father-in-law, Louise Scaffe McInnis and Archibald Clifford McInnis, brother-in-law Archibald Clifford McInnis, Jr. (Jeanette), brother-in-law Richard ‘Hugh” McInnis, a cousin Alvin Watson (Dorcas), brother-in-law, Lam Vu, nephew Richard ‘Corey’ McInnis, and an aunt-in-law, Nona Watson.
She is survived by 3 sons, Bud McInnis of Interlachen, Greg Barron of LaCrosse and Julian “Mac” McInnis of Palatka, 2 daughters, Leanne Davis (Jerry) of Interlachen and Tracey McInnis (Clyde) of Palatka, close family friend Rock Sexton, 1 sister-in-law Barbara McInnis Vu of DeLeon Springs, brother-in-law William “Bill” McInnis (Joyce) of Columbia, SC, 6 grandchildren, Jesse McInnis (Crystal) of St. Augustine, Evan McInnis of Jacksonville, Courtney Nestler (Rich) of Orange Park, Jared Davis (Kaylee) of St. Augustine, Matt Reed and Tyler McInnis (Stephanie), both of Palatka, 6 great-grandchildren, Cameron, Cason and Sophia McInnis of St. Augustine, Jax Nestler of Orange Park, Saylor and Knox Davis of St. Augustine, her devoted furry friend, JB, and numerous nieces and nephews.
