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A nurse by profession, Betsy McFarland lived a life of selfless devotion to others whether she was working, taking care of her husband or spending time with family and friends.
“She loved to be with her friends and had many of them. She was a kind and generous person,” said Becky Halfhill of Scottdale. “She was always taking care of somebody.”
Halfhill and Mrs. McFarland met in first grade, graduated together from Mt. Pleasant High School in 1966 and stayed friends throughout their lives. They recently helped organize their 50th class reunion but regularly had smaller reunions with close friends.
“We would get together once or twice a year and meet someplace halfway and shop and eat out and reminisce and have a wonderful time,” Halfhill said.
Betsy J. (Coldsmith) McFarland of Mt. Pleasant died Sunday, Feb. 12, 2017, at UPMC Montefiore in Pittsburgh after a brief battle with cancer. She was 68.
Mrs. McFarland was born Nov. 9, 1948, in Mt. Pleasant, a daughter of the late John C. and Betty B. Coldsmith. After graduating from high school, she attended Mercy Hospital School of Nursing in Pittsburgh and California University of Pennsylvania.
Mrs. McFarland worked in nursing for nearly five decades, retiring only recently, but her caring attitude extended to all aspects of her life and all the people in it.
“Nursing never stopped for her,” said her nephew, Ric Downs of Upper St. Clair. “She taught me how to care about people and to become a better person.”
Downs said he was especially close with his aunt because he lived with her family from age 10 through high school. “She truly was like a mother to me. She was always the stability in my life,” he said.
Longtime friend Cheryl Wadsworth of Mt. Pleasant knew Mrs. McFarland through their mutual involvement at the United Methodist Church of Mt. Pleasant. “She wasn't just my best friend — she was a family member. She's really going to be missed by everybody,” she said.
Wadsworth said Mrs. McFarland loved to cook and bake for family and friends. She always made more than anyone could eat, said her sister-in-law, Susan McFarland-Bandini.
“Holidays were prime time for her, when she would spend days baking and cooking in anticipation of everyone descending on her home,” McFarland-Bandini said. “Family was everything to Betsy, and what made her happiest was bringing that family together for our summer vacations on the Outer Banks, for birthdays, holidays or just a Sunday dinner with everyone crowded around the table telling stories and getting caught up about what was happening in our lives.”
After a lifetime of service to others, Mrs. McFarland found herself last year enjoying afternoon tea at the famous Fortnum & Mason restaurant in London. It was the fulfillment of a long-held desire to travel overseas, Halfhill said.
Mrs. McFarland traveled to England, Scotland and Ireland with Halfhill and her husband, John. “It was like a dream come true for her,” she said.
She also traveled to Hawaii and took a bus trip to New York City.
Mrs. McFarland was preceded in death by her husband, Howell T. “Mac” McFarland, who died July 12, 2001, after a long illness.
“During my brother's illness, she was at his side day and night and was his tireless advocate when he was too sick to advocate for himself,” McFarland-Bandini said.
Mrs. McFarland is survived by her brother, John Coldsmith, and his wife, Dee, of Oakdale; her sister, Bonnie B. Downs, of Scottdale; two nephews, Ric Downs, and his wife, Sue, and their daughter, Madison, and Chris Coldsmith and his wife, Adrienne; two nieces, Jen Russell, and her husband, Brett, and Becky Crawford and her husband, Ryan; her sister-in-law, Susan McFarland-Bandini, and her husband, Dr. Bernard Bandini; and numerous great-nieces, great-nephews and cousins.
Family and friends will be received from 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the Galone-Caruso Funeral Home, 204 Eagle St., Mt. Pleasant. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Friday in the funeral home, with the Rev. Donald Cook officiating. Interment will be in the Mt. Pleasant Cemetery.
Stephen Huba is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-850-1280 or shuba@tribweb.com.
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