Elizabeth Hopkins Witty

Elizabeth (Betty) Hopkins Witty passed away at the Windsor Place Nursing Home in Columbus, MS, on Wednesday, January 24, 2024. Visitation and funeral services will take place at Moore Memorial Methodist Church in Winona, MS on Monday, January 29, 2023 at 10:30am and 11:30am, respectively with a reception(including meal) following. Interment will follow at the Oakwood Cemetery in Winona.

She was born Elizabeth Branch Hopkins on March 11, 1923 to the late Florence Montgomery Hopkins and the late Dr. Arvah St. Clair Hopkins in Gulfport, MS. She was a member of the First Methodist Church in Gulfport. She graduated from Gulfport High School in 1940 and then attended Gulf Park College for Women for two years. She continued at the University of Mississippi from which she graduated with an extended B.A. degree in English in 1944. Having a life-long love of art and painting, she studied at the Art Students League in New York City, NY, after graduating from college. Later, some of her oil paintings were exhibited at the Municipal Art Gallery in Jackson, MS.

She married the late Joseph Bingham Witty of Greenwood, MS, in 1946, moved to Cambridge, MA, where her husband completed a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from Harvard University, and then moved to Jackson, MS. They raised three children, Dr. Joseph Bingham Witty, Columbus, MS, Dr. David Hopkins Witty, Tupelo, MS, and Mrs. Florence Elizabeth (Betsy) Watson, Hampstead, MD. They were members of Galloway Memorial Methodist Church, Broadmeadow Methodist Church, and later, Wells Memorial Methodist Church in Jackson.

She was an active member of the Art Study Club in Jackson, once serving as president. She and her husband were active members of the Jackson Yacht Club, for which he once served as commodore. She had a life-long connection with sailing from her youth, since her father was one of the founders of the Gulfport Yacht Club. In addition to her interest in art, she also had a passion for reading, being in the Great Books Club and also tutoring adults needing help with speech, reading, and writing.

One of her passions in later life was perfecting her technique in water color painting. She was an original member of the John Gaddis watercolor group in Jackson who displayed their paintings in the Gaddis Group Studio Art Gallery. She was a prolific painter and her paintings are enjoyed by many family members and friends. She donated some of her paintings for a number of years to the Wellsfest Charity Fundraiser sponsored by Wells Memorial Methodist Church.

She is preceded in death by her older brother, Dr. Arvah Mansell Hopkins, Gulfport, MS and survived by her older sister,  Alma Eugenie (Gene) Parkerson, Madison, MS. She is also survived by her three children, six grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren. Pallbearers will include Dr. Jeffrey B. Witty, Covington, LA, Mr. Joseph Witty, Huntsville, AL, Mr. Patrick Witty, Huntsville, AL, Mr. David Watson, Parkville, MD, Mr. Neale Watson, Hampstead, MD and Mr. Lee Branch, Winona, MS.

Arrangements are being handled by Memorial Gunter Peel Funeral Home in Columbus, MS. In lieu of sending flowers, the family requests that donations be made in her memory to one of the following: Wells Memorial Methodist Church, wellschurch.org, The Mississippi Museum of Art, msmuseumart.org,  The Habitat for Humanity, habitat.org, or another charity of your choosing.