Betty Barbara Smart
Betty Barbara (née Letts) Smart of Swarthmore died March 10, 2019 at Crozer Keystone Hospice. She was 90.
Betty Barbara was born in Keene, N.H., to George Haywood Letts and Bessie Taylor Hill Letts on January 15, 1929. She grew up from the age of one in Collingswood, N.J. and Barnegat Light, N.J. After graduating from Collingswood High School in 1947, she studied history at Temple University and then began her career as an alto in several classical music ensembles in Philadelphia. In this way, she met Robert MacClellan Smart, whom she married on July 10, 1954. They moved to Swarthmore in 1960, when Bob joined the music faculty at Swarthmore College.
In Swarthmore, Betty Barbara worked at the bookstore Bookways, and subsequently as the interlibrary loan librarian at the Swarthmore Public Library, from which she retired in 2009, aged 80. She was an avid bibliophile with a collection in the thousands of books of English literature, history, and art history.
Betty Barbara was a longtime member of the Church of the Holy Trinity Rittenhouse Square, where she was an energetic supporter of the music program in general and a benefactor particularly of the choir. She was an enthusiastic traveler whose first trip to Europe, in 1953 with Singing City and the Temple University choir, made an indelible impression, involving as it did first-hand experience of the aftermath of the Second World War. She and Bob often traveled abroad; their favorite destinations included Germany, the Netherlands, and England.
Betty Barbara was predeceased by Bob Smart in 1991. She is survived by her daughter, Karen Blough, son-in-law, Bill Blough, and grandson, Andrew Loaiza.
A memorial service and reception will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 1, 2019 at The Church of the Holy Trinity Rittenhouse Square, located at 1904 Walnut St. in Philadelphia.
Donations
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Curtis Institute of Music, 1726 Locust St., Philadelphia, PA 19103.
Arrangements: Toppitzer Funeral Home at Arlington.
