Elizabeth (Betty) Koenig Armsby

Elizabeth (Betty) Koenig Armsby, 99, of Brevard, NC died on February 26th, 2020.  Born on August 14, 1920, she was the daughter of the late Jacob Gordon and Elsie Nicholson Koenig.  She graduated from Le Mars High School, attended Western Union College and graduated from the Minnesota School of Business.  In 1939 she began a 35-year career as a secretary.  She worked two years with the Director of the Iowa State Income Tax Division and two years in Washington, DC with the FBI Assistant Director in charge of the Technical Laboratory.  She moved to Atlanta, GA in 1944 to become secretary to three presidents of Georgia Institute of Technology for 21 years.  She “retired” for a year in 1965-66 to travel extensively in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, England and Wales.  She then became secretary to the chairman and to the president of Atlanta Newspapers, Inc., for 8 years.

In 1974 she married John Ware Armsby of Atlanta.  They spent 25 years enjoying their mutual interests in golf, travel and photography.  In 1998 they moved to College Walk retirement Community in Brevard, NC.  John died in 2004 and she remained at College Walk where her sister, Jean Laing Koenig, joined her in 2007.

She was an active church and hospital volunteer in Atlanta and Brevard.  She stitched the red-background needlepoint kneelers and altar accessories which she gave to St. George’s Episcopal Church in Le Mars to commemorate the hundredth anniversary of the marriage of her grandparents, James Birrell Nicholson and Georgina Laing, on May 10, 1883.  She also created needlepoint kneelers for the Cathedral of St. Philip in Atlanta and St. Philip’s Episcopal Church  in Brevard.

In addition to her dear sister Jean, she is survived by stepsons John Armsby, Jr. (Karen) of Dacula, GA and William Holbrook Armsby (Olivia) of Atlanta, GA; stepdaughters Leslie G. Armsby of Smyrna, GA and Ann A. Saleeby (David) of Society Hill, SC; eight step-grandchildren; her Goddaughter Sandra Barker Thurmond of Birmingham, AL; niece Eva Durham (Gary) of Cape Coral, FL; nephew Kenneth B. Koenig (Daisy) of Loxley, AL.  Her brother James J. Koenig and sister-in-law Eva Mae preceded her in death.

A memorial service will be held at St. Philip’s Church in Brevard on March 12, 2020 at 1 pm.   Memorials may be made to St. Philip’s Church, 256 East Main Street, Brevard, NC.

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