Betty Hart

Betty Joyce Hart, loving wife of 63 years and mother of two, grandmother of five and great-grandmother of two, passed away at 1:30 AM on Friday, February 13, 2015 at Northside Hospital following a short illness. Betty was born in Newcastle, Australia to Mary Maud (Daisy) and Edward (Ned) Bingemann on December 5, 1926. After graduating from High School she went to Business College and upon graduating was employed by a prominent Chartered Accountant Company in Sydney, Australia. In 1952 Betty and several friends traveled to England for a short tour. In London she continued her friendship with Dr. Raymond Hart, and they were married on September 5, 1952 at St. Cuthberts’ Anglican Church in London and then moved to Cambridge, England for 3 years. During that period, Betty was employed as a secretary to Sir Lawrence Bragg in the Medical Research Council Group. During her tenure at MRC, Betty typed the now famous paper by Francis Crick and James D. Watson on the Structure of DNA, published in the Journal Nature, April 1953. Betty and Raymond returned to Melbourne, Australia for 3 years. During that time, her son Timothy K. Hart was born (1957). In 1958, Betty and Raymond immigrated to Downers Grove, Illinois where Raymond had a position at Argonne National Laboratory. Betty gave birth to a daughter, Rowena (Ro) Jane Hart in September 1959. For the next 12 years Betty was a mother and housewife before moving to Atlanta in 1970. Betty returned to working as a claims adjuster with Zurich-American Insurance Company in 1974 until retirement in 1994. Betty then volunteered her services to the Northside Hospital Auxiliary until 2010. Betty took an active interest in Holy Innocents’ Episcopal Church’s St. Monica’s Chapter and several other church activities. Betty was a keen, lifelong bridge player. Throughout her marriage, they widely traveled visiting many countries and sites around the world. In lieu of flowers, gifts can be made to the Holy Innocents’ Episcopal Church or the Northside Hospital Auxiliary. Memorial Services will be held Thursday, February 19, 2015 at 11 a.m. at Holy Innocents Episcopal Church, 805 Mt. Vernon Hwy. Sandy Springs, GA 30327. A reception will follow in the parish hall. Sandy Springs Chapel, 136 Mt. Vernon Hwy.NE, Sandy Springs, GA 30328.