Betty Jane Wilson

Betty Jane (Webb) Wilson was born on Christmas Eve, 1936, in Charleston, South Carolina, to Colonel Lester A. and Madge Priscilla Webb — a fitting birthday for someone who would spend her life giving to others. She grew up in Macon, Georgia, where she graduated from A.L. Miller Senior High School, and went on to Emory University in Atlanta, earning her Bachelor of Arts in 1958. At Emory she was elected Secretary of the freshman class and appointed to the President's Student Advisory Committee.

After graduation she taught second grade before marrying Cecil Bruce Wilson, M.D., with whom she would build a full and well-traveled life. The early years of their marriage took them from Atlanta to Portsmouth, Virginia, to Okinawa, Japan — where Betty Jane worked for a radio station in Naha, teaching grade school Okinawans English — and then to California, before the family settled in Maitland and Winter Park, Florida. Together she and Cecil raised three children: Randall Bruce Wilson, Brian Thomas Wilson, and Krista Elizabeth (Wilson) Leland.

In Winter Park, Betty Jane engaged fully in community life. She became a realtor with Village Realty of Winter Park, earned a Certificate of Achievement in Real Estate Principles and Practices from Rollins College, and received the National Honor Award from the Gallery of Homes Association. She served as President of the Maitland Welcome Wagon and was a member of the Junior League of Greater Orlando. A devoted member of First Methodist Church of Winter Park since 1969, she sang in the choir and served as Chair of the Parsonage Committee.

As Cecil's career in medicine grew to encompass leadership roles in organized medicine at the state, national, and international levels — including serving as President of the American Medical Association and the World Medical Association — Betty Jane became an active and committed partner in that work. She served as President of the Orange County Medical Society Alliance (1986–1987) and was awarded lifetime membership in 1991. She went on to serve as President of the Florida Medical Association Auxiliary (1990–1991), a role that brought formal recognition from Florida Governor Bob Martinez, and which led Mayor Bill Frederick of Orlando to proclaim September 13, 1990 Betty Jane Wilson Day in the City of Orlando. She was featured on the front page of Kaleidoscope, the official publication of the Florida Medical Association Auxiliary, that same year.

Her contributions extended well beyond her leadership titles. She served on the Legislative Committee of the American Medical Association Alliance and chaired the Florida Hospital Golden Gala V in 1985. Betty Jane also championed legislation through the Florida School Health Association — a bill passed by the state legislature — for which she received formal recognition for Service to School Health in 1990. Beginning in 1996 she served on the Board during the development of the Ronald McDonald House on Alden Road in Orlando; and remained dedicated to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Florida through 2002. In 1999, the Orange County Medical Society Alliance honored her with a Special Recognition Award for Outstanding Service, presented by President Lee Floyd. In 2003, she received the Peggy Wilcox Award for her FMA Alliance service. The Florida Medical Association also honored Betty Jane and Cecil together with the Commitment to Healthy Advocacy and Partnership of the Medical Family award — a fitting tribute to their lifelong partnership and commitment to making the world a better place.

That partnership took them around the world. Through Cecil's involvement with the World Medical Association, Betty Jane traveled with him to meetings across six continents, visiting Iceland, Great Britain, Scotland, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Austria, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Greece, Russia, Italy, Lithuania, Israel, South Africa, India, Thailand, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Indonesia, New Zealand, Australia, Mexico, Canada, Uruguay, and Brazil.

Taken together, the arc of Betty Jane's life — from the classroom to the community, from the church choir to the halls of organized medicine, from Maitland to six continents — reflected a woman whose defining quality was her devotion to others, whether that meant her family, her church, her community, or causes larger than herself.

Betty Jane Wilson is survived by her husband Cecil; her children Randall Bruce Wilson and his wife Dominique, Brian Thomas Wilson and his wife Meggen, and Krista Elizabeth (Wilson) Leland and her husband Steve; her grandchildren Margaret Morrison Wilson, Elizabeth Webb Larson, and Kimmons Scott Nonnast; and her sister Madge Webb Amann and her husband Bert and nephew B. Sanford Birdsey III and his wife Cole.

A service will be held on Friday, March 6, 2026 at 2 PM, at the First United Methodist Church of Winter Park. The church is located at 125 North Interlachen Ave., Winter Park 32789