Betty Burton Arinder

Betty was born on September 22, 1962, in Winona, Mississippi, to Bobbie Burton McGarrity and Tommy Wayne Burton. She and her younger sister, Penny Godwin attended Winona High School, where Betty graduated as salutatorian in 1980.

Betty graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Millsaps College in 1984, where she was a member of Phi Mu sorority. She received her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from Mississippi College School of Law in 1988. Betty was selected as a member of her law school's national trial competition team for 1988.

Betty enjoyed a long and successful career in employment law, spending over twenty years practicing workers' compensation defense. Betty began working at Wilkins, Stephens, and Tipton as a law student and worked her way up to the level of partner. In 2010, Betty was named one of Mississippi’s Top 50 Leading Attorneys in the Mississippi Business Journal’s Leadership in Law Class. Betty earned a Martindale-Hubbell rating of AV, the highest rating one can achieve. She was also a Mid-South Super Lawyer and a Best Lawyer, and received the 2018 "Friend of MASI Award." Additionally, Betty was selected to serve as a statewide mediator in a program administered by the Workers’ Compensation and Administrative Law Section of the Mississippi Bar, for which she had also previously served as Chair. She was, by appointment, a past member of the Advisory Council to the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission. In 2023, Betty was awarded the Sam Cox Spirit Award for her inimitable spirit, love of life, and positive influence on our world. Betty finished her career as a partner at Wells, Marble & Hurst, PLLC, where she worked for over 16 years.

On November 19, 1988, Betty married her soulmate, Gary. They were married for over 37 years and had three beautiful children together. Betty's hobbies included reading, cooking, and collecting cookbooks and recipes, but her absolute favorite pastime was being with her family. Whether it was hosting a big family gathering or simply playing with her kids and grandkids in the pool, Betty cherished every minute of the time she spent with her loved ones. She especially loved spending quality time in the kitchen with her family. Her favorite family tradition was putting on their annual Christmas baking and candy-making day. Even while working full-time, she attended softball games and choral performances, hosted parties for her children and their friends, was the most wonderful "BeBe" to her grandchildren, and provided a warm, welcoming space for anyone who entered her home. Betty had a genuine joy for life and radiated love, laughter, and warmth, which she shared with everyone she met.

Betty is preceded in death by her father, Tommy Wayne Burton. Betty is survived by her mother, Bobbie Burton McGarrity, her sister, Penny Godwin (Ray), her children: Tori Arinder Hood (Ben), Amy Arinder Whittenton (Will), and Graham Arinder; and two grandchildren: Liam and Jamey Whittenton; as well as a large extended family she loved deeply.

Visitation will be at Madison Methodist Church on Tuesday, March 17, at 9:30 am, with funeral services held immediately after at 10:30 am. A graveside service will follow at Parkway Memorial Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating in Betty's name to The Mustard Seed in Brandon, MS, or Kids' Chance of Mississippi in Jackson, MS.

The family is so grateful to Dr. Tammy Young and her team for their compassionate care of Betty.