At the age of 5 years old, Betty started school at the Condor School in Dublin, GA with eleven grades all together. She ended up graduating from Dublin High School in 1945 and went on to attend Barry College for one and half years. In 1947, her aunt Dena (who was her mother’s identical twin sister) came down from Atlanta, GA to visit. After that visit, Betty went back to Atlanta with her aunt to live and find a job. Her first job was working for the Southern Bell Telephone Company. She was there for a little over 5 years and excelled at several different positions in that time.
Betty met her future husband, Robert “Bob” H. Sprayberry, Sr. while in Atlanta and they were married on August 20, 1950. From then until 2003 upon his death, they remained devoted to each other. Betty and Bob moved between Georgia and Texas during his aviation career with the military. They eventually came back to Georgia in 1953 and lived in multiple areas around the Atlanta area, as well as the Metro area, before finally settling in Douglasville, GA in 1971.
Once settled in Douglasville, Betty started Sprayberry’s Flowers, which produced various floral arrangements ranging from artificial to personally grown fresh bouquets. The company also produced a range of sand-painted terrariums, which were featured all over the Southern United States including various JC Penny Stores in the region. She eventually closed the business after 10 years in order to spend more time with her infant grandsons. Betty and Bob also regularly attended and became involved with the First United Methodist Church of Douglasville. There, Betty taught 3rd Grade Sunday school for over 30 years, positively impacting a multitude of lives in the process.
Left to cherish her memory are her 3 children, Nancy E. Sprayberry, Robert H. Sprayberry, Jr., and William Paul Sprayberry, II; she was a devoted grandmother to her 3 grandsons, Robert H. Sprayberry, III, William Paul Sprayberry, III, and Cody Mathew Sprayberry; and an adoring great-grandmother to Reed Sprayberry, Elleah Sprayberry, Benjamin Sprayberry, and Mason Sprayberry; her last surviving sister, Paula O. Johnson of Riverside, CA; and a countless number of church family and friends who she inspired with her faith, spirit, and generosity.
Betty Sprayberry passed away on September 1, 2022 at the age of 93. In addition to her parents, she is preceded in death by her husband of more than 50 years, Col. Robert H. Sprayberry, Sr.; and her brothers and sisters, Bonnie F. Ogburn, Jr., James L. Ogburn, Katheryn O. Walker, Vida Lanora Hutchenson, Charlton P. Ogburn, Hilton Ogburn.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home on Wednesday, September 7, 2022 from 5:00 pm until 8:00 pm. A funeral service will be held on Thursday, September 8, 2022 at 2:00 pm at Douglasville First United Methodist Church with Reverend Roger Vest officiating. She will be laid to rest at Bethel United Methodist Church Cemetery in Hiram, GA.
Those who wish to express condolences or share a special memory to the Sprayberry family may do so online at www.whitleygarner.com
Arrangements by: Whitley-Garner at Rosehaven Funeral Home, Douglasville, GA 30134, 770-942-4246
