Bettie Hurd

Bettie Gray Hurd (born January 23, 1925 in Sheffield, Colbert County; died February 21, 2019 in Birmingham) was a real estate agent, president of the Birmingham Children's Theatre and a director of the Birmingham Festival of Arts, chairing the 1971 Salute to Spain.

Bettie was the daughter of Dr Edward Waters Gray and the former Louise Thomson. She attended school in Florence and graduated from the University of Alabama. She married investment banker James L. Cox and moved to Birmingham in 1952. The couple had one daughter, Bettie Gray Cox. She worked as a realtor for Ray & Poynor Properties.

Bettie was an active member of St Mary's-on-the-Highlands Episcopal Church, the Junior League of Birmingham, and the House and Garden Club. She was a regular supporter of the Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Birmingham Ballet and participated with the Maskers and Gaieties dance clubs. She co-chaired the Museum Ball and chaired the first Opera Ball. Her work to promote the Festival of Arts' "Salute to Spain" led to her being named "Birmingham Woman of the Year" and inducted into the "Orden de Isabel la Católica" by the Government of Spain.

She later married retired advertising executive Kenneth Hurd Jr.

References

• "Bettie Gray Hurd" obituary (February 24, 2019) The Birmingham News