Betty Ann Kirkland

She was born November 15, 1930. Betty is preceded in death by her parents; Slater John Smith and Minnie Pearl Deas Smith, her son; Timothy D. Kirkland, three brothers; Buddy Smith, Leon Smith, and Phillip Smith. She is survived by her daughter Nancy Kirkland Nelson (Renny) and two sisters; Maurice Anderson and Janiece Taylor. She is also survived by a host of grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Born in rural Coffeeville, Alabama, Betty grew up in a family of hardworking people. They were relatively poor;however, they did not know they were. They were always fed and happy. Betty graduated from Coffeeville High School and went on to attend and graduate from Mobile Infirmary Nursing School. She worked as a surgical nurse at Mobile Infirmary Hospital for 40+ years. Some of her colleagues referred to her not as a nurse but "the nurse of the surgical department". She assisted Ernest G. DeBakey and Larry McGee, both prominent surgeons in Mobile. The career of nursing suited Betty as she was one of the most caring people you would ever meet. She was an avid tennis player and runner.

There are so many things we could say, but most of all, she loved her family. She would always say "We have a good family". Betty had actually been gone for some time due to Dementia/Alzheimer's. We relished in the visits when she would remember and converse with us. She was a wonderful mother, grandmother, sister and friend. Betty will be greatly missed.