Elizabeth "Betty" Jane was born to Charles and Ida Hebrard in Glenwood, WA. She was the fourth of five girls. When Betty was a young girl the family moved to Salinas, CA. They lived on a small farm just outside of town.

On March 23, 1940, Betty married Calvin Jones Smith. In 1942, Calvin enlisted in the Navy, while Betty stayed with her family and worked as a telegraph operator. In 1944, Betty and Cal welcomed their first child, Stella Lea. After the War, Betty and Cal bought their first home, and in 1947, their second child, Calvin James (Jim) was born.

In 1956, the family moved from Salinas to Sunnyvale, CA where their third child, Walter Stuart was born in 1957, and in 1960 they relocated again to Carmichael, CA where their fourth child, Heidi Lynn was born in 1961.

Throughout her married life, Betty also worked as a waitress, school secretary and real estate agent. She was a Girl Scout leader for both of her daughters and a leader in the womens group at St. Michael's Episcopal Church in Carmichael where she successfully headed up many fund raisers. She and Cal were avid bridge players.

After their retirement, Betty and Cal moved to Brookings, OR, then to Sebastopol, CA where they celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. While living in Sebastopol, Betty was also active in St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, and volunteered at the Living Room in Santa Rosa. She spent many hours knitting hats for the homeless, sewed dozens of tote bags for homeless women, and each year, made and filled Christmas stockings for their children.

In 2005, a few years after her husband passed away, Betty moved to Issaquah, WA to be closer to her daughters. During these last years of her life, she enjoyed spending time with her daughters and their families and participating in events with the retirement community in which she lived.

Betty is survived by two sisters, Margaret Peterson, of Kingsburg, CA, and Isabelle Coleman, of Folsom, CA; her four children, Stella Bull (Jim), Calvin (Valerie), Walter (Barbara), and Heidi Francis (David); seven grandchildren, David Guion (Stephanie), Sandra Snyder, Daniel Smith (Janee'), Austin Smith, Laura Terasaki (Michael), Andrew Smith, and Daniel Francis; eight great grandchildren; one great, great grandchild due in March 2013, and 10 nieces and nephews.