Elizabeth Kruskal Allen Segal

July 16, 1918 - November 7, 2010

Elizabeth (Betty) Segal made a graceful exit on November 7, 2010, in the presence of her husband of 54 years, Mayer Segal. Betty was born and raised in New York. She attended the Dalton School in Manhattan; weekends and summers were spent in Pelham, New York, where she was happiest riding her horse, visiting her beloved Kruskal cousins or playing tennis with her father, Eugene. Trips to Japan and Europe in the 1930s and Mexico in the 1950s influenced her aesthetic for the rest of her life. She graduated from Wellesley College with a major in Art History and a minor in French. After college she married Joseph Allen and moved to Urbana, Illinois where she returned to college for an MA in French and Spanish. In 1955, she packed up her three small boys and moved across the country to California, finding a new home in the family community of Kensington in the San Francisco Bay Area. She met Mayer Segal soon after. They married in 1956 and jointly devoted the rest of their lives to family, social justice, disarmament and environmental causes. Betty was proud of the work that she did on the Peace and Freedom News (later the Freedom News) a journal produced in the basement of their home, and later for her reporting for the Berkeley Barb and Pacifica radio. She also enjoyed art classes at CCAC and the Richmond Art Center, filling their home with beautiful ceramic sculptures. At 56 she decided to return to her love of horses and brought home a two year old quarter horse that she named My Shadow. While others her age might have been contemplating rest and retirement, she trained for competitive trail rides. Shadow (and later her offspring, Sunshine) brought Betty much joy. After almost 40 years in the Bay Area, Betty dreamed of a single-level home where she could have the horses in the back yard. In 1994 Mayer and Betty moved to Bayside. In Humboldt she found good friends at the Unitarian Fellowship, the Bayside Garden Club and in the equestrian community. She was happy to include her daughter Mara's circle of friends as well, welcoming them to her home for holidays and parties. Nothing was more important to Betty than her family. Holiday celebrations were always festive affairs, filled with good food and lively conversation. She eagerly anticipated the arrival of children and grandchildren for visits, whether giving riding lessons and taking them on peace marches when they were young or, more recently, enjoying quieter one-on-one moments. Though her last years were clouded with anxieties that affected her overall enjoyment of life, she was always happy to see her family and would often surprise everyone with the breadth of knowledge still in her possession. She is survived by her family, of whom she was very proud. Beloved husband Mayer Segal, children Joseph Allen (Vicki), Louis Segal (Susan), David Allen (Ric), Andrew Allen (Dottie) and Mara Segal (Chris) and grandchildren Jon, Emily, Ben, Katie, Molly, Nate, Kelly, Lissa and Nicholas. Betty supported a number of causes both locally and nationally. Memorial contributions could be made to Arcata House, Food for People, Amnesty International or a progressive organization of your choice. A memorial service will be held near her birthday next July. Arrangements under the direction of Paul's Chapel, Arcata, CA 707-822-2445, www.paulschapel.com.

Published in Eureka Times-Standard from December 19 to December 21, 2010