Bettie Thomas Coley

Bettie Thomas Coley died in Atlanta, GA on December 19, 2018 after a heroic 16 year battle with cancer. Services will be held at H.M. Patterson & Son Spring Hill Chapel, 1020 Spring Street, NW, Atlanta, GA 30309 at 11:30 am on Friday, December 28, 2018. The family will receive visitors at 11:00 am to 11:30 am at H.M. Patterson & Son Spring Hill. Her ashes will be committed to the columbarium at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in a private ceremony on December 30.

Bettie was born May 4, 1951 in Alexander City, Alabama to Russell Thomas and Crawford Anthony Thomas. She attended school there until the 9th grade, then Bartrum School in Jacksonville, FL for one year before transferring to All Saints Episcopal School in Vicksburg, Mississippi, from which she received her diploma with honors. She then attended and graduated with honors from Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts. Later she attended Georgia State University, receiving her Masters of Public Accounting. She practiced as a CPA and Enrolled Agent in Atlanta. Bettie always enjoyed cooking and eating good food. After retiring from accounting, she studied at and received an associate degree from the Culinary Institute.

She was active in the community, at St. Lukes, and served as Board Chair at The Galloway School.

For the last 18 years she and Bob have spent much of their time at Lake Toxaway, NC, where she worked to restore natural habitat and enjoyed hiking in the mountains and bird watching.

She married Robert (Bob) Lightfoot Coley, June 17, 1972. He survives her as do her children, James Lightfoot Coley (wife Kim) and their children, Evan and Harper, by her daughter Kathleen Coley Dinerman (husband Justin) and their children Ellie and Mary, all of Atlanta, GA; and by her older brother John Russell Thomas (Claudia) of Alexander City, Alabama, and his sons John J. Thomas (Gina) and Russell L. Thomas(Cathy), both of Birmingham, Alabama.

She was the most loving and finest possible wife, mother, grandmother and friend, and will be missed by many.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to Children's Harbor, 1 Our Children's Highway, Alexander City, Alabama 35010.