Elizabeth “Betty” (Smith) Robertson passed away peacefully on June 15, 2025. She was born, August 15, 1935, to Ernest and Helen (Vesely) Smith, and lived nearly all her life in Willington CT. As a child, she lived with her multi-generational extended family in South Willington Village, where several family members worked at the Willington thread mill. She attended Hall Memorial School in Willington, graduated from Windham High School in 1953, and Willimantic State Teachers College in 1957. She returned to Center School in Willington to teach first grade for over 30 years. She later moved into school administration for several years before retiring. Betty fondly recalled her many students and particularly enjoyed teaching second-generation first graders in her class.
Betty was an extremely active volunteer in the community. She was a significant part of the Willington Historical Society, the Tolland Grange, and volunteered at the Federated Church of Willington and Red Cross Blood Drives. In her later years she was a major organizer for events at the Willington Senior Center and was one of the inaugural residents of the new senior housing in town. Betty was an avid Bingo player, taking Bingo cruises, and playing, usually successfully, her whole adult life. She was very proud of her Czech heritage and had a large collection of Czech-made pottery.
She had one son, Jonathan Robertson, who pre-deceased her in 2018. She moved to Sarasota, FL in 2023 to be near her nieces and nephew and brother Robert, who passed away last December at age 95. Betty was honored with a Willington Historical Society luncheon when she moved, where State Senator Jeff Gordon presented a State Citation to Betty for her years of service to the Willington Community.
She is survived by two grandchildren, Timithy Robertson of Willington and Tabitha (Justin) Konsitzke of Mauston Wisconsin, several cousins, and her nieces Laurel Best (Art Abdinoor) and Carrie Cox (Ken Cox), and nephew Ernest Smith (Karyn Smith), all of Sarasota, Florida.
There will be a Funeral Service on Thursday, July 10, 2025, at 10:00 am at the Federated Church of Willington, 132 River Road, Willington, CT. A burial will follow at Willington Hill Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to the Willington Senior Center or the Willington Historical Society.