Elizabeth Jane Smart Merriam (Betsey) , age 89, passed away peacefully on December 11, 2019 in Concord, New Hampshire. She had just celebrated an amazing Thanksgiving with her family, attentively engaging in conversation with her eight grandchildren, delighting in their stories and achievements.
Betsey was born on August 30, 1930 in Bronxville, New York and then moved to the Lower East Side of New York City. She developed a love for the city and its culture throughout her childhood. When she was twelve, she moved to New Jersey and attended school in Mountain Lakes. Betsey studied science at Colby College in Waterville, Maine, graduating in 1952. She met her future husband, Thornton Ward Merriam, Jr., at Colby, and they were married in 1953. She attended Yale School of Nursing and Columbia Presbyterian University graduating in 1955. In 1962, she and Thornton opened his private medical practice in Bangor, Maine. They raised their family of five children in Bangor, and spent happy days swimming at Lucerne Lake, riding horses in Newburgh, hiking at Katahdin, sugaring in Maxfield, canoeing on the Kenduskeag Stream, skiing at Big Moose Mt. (Squaw) in Greenville, and visiting cousins and relatives throughout the state. As a child, Maine was the place where Betsey spent summers, returning every year to her dad’s birthplace and her deep family connection. Her paternal grandfather taught her to love and respect the woods, the fresh air and the clean waters of Maine.
In 1988, after receiving a Master’s degree in Expressive Art Therapy at Lesley College in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Betsey moved to Portsmouth, New Hampshire. She loved being near the sea and sharing her love of the outdoors with the young children at the Community Child Care Center in Portsmouth where she worked.
Betsey was a lively and lovely person who strongly believed in family. She was predeceased by her parents Harry Vincent Smart and Marion Lewis Smart of Machias, Maine and her sister Barbara Letts of Glen Rock, New Jersey. She is survived by her brother John Smart of Sydney Australia; Frank E. Weeks, her loving partner of more than 20 years; her five children: Lucinda Leveille, David Merriam, Nan Thompson, Laura Liz Kyle and Jane Spina and their families; her nieces and nephews; and many relatives and cousins on both the Smart and Merriam sides. Betsey’s grandchildren continued to bring her joy and pride up to the very end. Alice Thompson, Sawyer Thompson, Anna Kyle, Lucy Merriam, Emma Kyle, Hannah Merriam, Vincent Spina and Elizabeth Spina were truly the center of her universe! Frank’s children and grandchildren became a second family to her as well. Betsey’s inquiring and curious spirit, her infectious laugh and sense of humor, her indomitable will and love of family kept her going throughout her life. Those who met Betsey were often struck by the immediate connection she created and her ability to find a common ground for conversation creating a sense of ease and acceptance. She truly loved people!
There will be a private service and burial in Maxfield, Maine in the summer of 2020. In lieu of flowers or gifts a donation in Betsey’s memory can be made to the following non-profit organizations:
Friends of Minute Man National Park - Merriam Corner Fund
(Write Merriam Corner Fund in the memo line and send to:
174 Liberty St. Concord, MA 01742)
Salvation Army Sebago Lake Camp: give.salvationarmy.org
Student Conservation Association: thesca.org
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