Supporting women starting over
November 21, 2017Betty Taylor
Betty Taylor was smart, funny, and hard-working. She loved to be around people, enjoyed time near the water, and was a dedicated member of her church for more than 60 years.
She also knew what it was like for life to head in unexpected directions, as hers did after a divorce.
“There wasn’t a help group then for women over 50 who needed to start over,” said Betty’s daughter, Holly Moon.
Her mother’s experience spurred Holly to begin thinking about ways to support women starting over. Then she started learning more about the challenges faced by local women in other types of crises like domestic violence or abuse. Holly remembered hearing that the closest emergency shelter was in another county and might only have a space or two open at any given time.
“If Mom knew about that, she would have wanted to help,” said Holly. In honor of their mom, Holly and her sister Linda decided to create the Betty Taylor Memorial Fund—a Build-A-Fund that will support the wellbeing of local women, especially those in crisis.
As a former Community Foundation trustee, Holly knew that their gifts would be invested wisely and that the fund would continue to grow and provide support to generations of local women.
“I know there are excellent people investing that money,” said Holly. “My sister and I thought it would be a really nice legacy. Mom would like the fact that the fund is there for the specific purpose of helping women and she would love to know that others could contribute.”