Byard, Elizabeth 'Betty' G.

Elizabeth “Betty” G. Byard of Cedar Rapids died Monday, March 11, 2013. Funeral Mass will be held 1 p.m. Monday, March 18, at All Saints Catholic Church, with Father John R. Flaherty presiding. Visitation will begin at 11 a.m. Monday at the church. A reception will be held in the church immediately following the funeral mass, with a private family burial at Cedar Memorial Park Cemetery to follow.

Survivors include her son, Jim (Michelle); daughter-in-law, Sandy Byard; her grandchildren, Brent, Erik, Jillian, Lindsey and John; and her great-grandson, Brendon.

Betty was preceded in death by her parents; her brother, Jack; sister, Janet; her daughter, Kristin; her husband, Dale; her son, Steve; and the nephew she and Dale raised, David.

Betty was born July 10, 1928, in Dubuque, Iowa, the daughter of John and Millicent Gantz, and was united in marriage to Dale Byard on May 10, 1951. Betty was a beautiful woman and was one of the first stewardesses for TWA and a frequent local model. She later joined her husband and started a vending business in Cedar Rapids.

Betty's great joy in life was her family, and she took great pride in her children, grandchildren, and great-grandson. She loved entertaining, boating on the Mississippi and later in Florida, world travel, and the pure enjoyment of having such wonderful friends and family.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to Waypoint, Services for Women, Children and Families, 318 Fifth St. SE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52401 or your local women's shelter.

Please leave an online condolence for the family at www.cedarmemorial.com under Obituaries.

Published March 17, 2013 in The Gazette