Elizabeth A. “Betty” Douglas passes at 92.

[Dr. Nelson Harrison]

Elizabeth A. “Betty” Douglas

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Elizabeth A. “Betty” Douglas, 92, of Rochester Twp., passed away July 15, 2023 at Rochester Manor. Born December 22, 1930 in Rochester, she was the daughter of the late Charles and Irma Edmunds Asche. She was a member of St. Stephen’s Anglican Church, Sewickley, where she had been a member of the choir. She was a former member of the Second Baptist Church, Rochester, where she was raised and in the church choir and also taught Sunday School. She retired from Geneva College in 1996 as Professor Emeritus in Humanities and Fine Arts, but then continued to do guest lectures at Geneva College.

She attended and graduated from Beaver Falls High School, at the age of 15, where she won Scholastic Awards in poetry, short story writing and visual art. While in Beaver Falls, she studied piano for 10 years, sang in youth choirs and was a Girl Scout through the senior level.

Professor Douglas’s collegiate preparation began with an Andrew Carnegie Scholarship to study painting and design in the College of Fine Arts at Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon) where she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Her Master of Arts in the History of Art and Architecture came from the University of Pittsburgh. After a year on a factory assembly line after college, Ms. Douglas began her teaching career as an art instructor at Southern University, Baton Rouge, LA. After that she held positions as assistant and associate professor at LeMoyne College, Memphis, TN, Philander Smith, Little Rock, AR and Texas College, Tyler, TX. Then art director at nationally distributed SEPIA Magazine and special assistant to John Howard Griffin, whose investigative journalism led to the book, Black Like Me, that played a key role in the U.S. civil rights struggle.

In the early 1960’s Professor Douglas returned to academia, accepting an appointment to the faculty of Geneva College, Beaver Falls, PA. She rose to a full professorship and was coordinator of the team-taught interdisciplinary humanities curriculum that celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2018. Even though now retired, she continued to return as a guest lecturer.

Over the years many organizations have utilized her talents in various capacities, and she has received many awards for professional excellence: Woman of Distinction in the Arts from the Western PA Girls Scouts; the Martin Luther King, Jr. Dream-Makers Award from the Baden Academy School; Lifetime Service Award, Rochester Chamber of Commerce and the Larry Bruno Recognition Award. She has been included in multiple editions of Who’s Who in America, in the East, and of American Women.

Elizabeth served on the boards of directors of several community organizations, among which are the Merrick Art Gallery Associates, the Beaver Valley Musicians Union, The Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School, the Guild Council of the Pittsburgh Center of the Arts, the Midland Arts Council and Scholarship Chair of the Rochester Chamber of Commerce. In recognition of outstanding contributions to her profession and the Marquis Who’s Who community, Elizabeth Asche Douglas has been featured on the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement website.

In addition to her above achievements, and upon her retirement in 1996, she has served as Professor Emerita Elizabeth (Betty) Asche Douglas and taught Humanities at Geneva College for 30 years. Since her retirement in 1996, she has served as the owner/director of the Douglas Art Gallery in Rochester, Pa. Betty had a strong desire to bring the presence of the art culture to the Beaver County Community. Her works of art have been exhibited in permanent collections and temporary exhibits at numerous galleries. She is an archived artist at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C.

In addition, Betty was a former Art Teacher at Rochester High School, an inductee in the Beaver Valley Musician Hall of Fame, and in 2015 was requested to do a tribute to Andy Warhol.

She was preceded in death by her husband of 40 years, William R. Douglas in 1997. She was also preceded in death by a sister, Lois Rush.

She is survived by three daughters and three sons in law, Andrea Lynn and Tim Hanford, Boynton Beach, Florida, Vicki J. and Terry Gaddy, Port St. Lucie, Florida and Nanette R. Douglas and Kendrich Sykes, St. Cloud, Florida; a granddaughter, Aschley Elizabeth Gaddy; a grandson, Denton Tre Douglas Gaddy, and a great grandson, Ali Adrian Frohlich, all of Florida; a sister, Barbara Haynes and her husband, Donald, Williamsburg, VA; a brother Charles “Butch” Asche and his wife, Nancy, Vancouver, Washington; a niece, Melinda Rush; a nephew, Michael Rush; a great niece, Danielle Rush, a great great nephew, Xavier and a special family friend, Rex Trimm.

Friends will be received Monday, July 24, 2023 from 2-4 PM and 6-8 PM in the WILLIAM MURPHY FUNERAL HOME, INC., 349 Adams Street, Rochester. A Service will be held Tuesday, at 11 AM in the St. Stephen’s Anglican Church, 405 Frederick Ave. Sewickley, PA. Everyone is requested to meet at church for Betty’s service.

In lieu of flowers, Memorial Contributions can be made to the Beaver Valley Choral Society, P.O. Box 1628, Beaver Falls, PA 15010 or Geneva College Department of Fine Arts, 3200 College Avenue, Beaver Falls, PA 15010 or the Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School, 1 Lincoln Park, Midland, PA 15059.

Posted online on July 17, 2023

Published in Ellwood City Ledger, The Beaver County Times