Betty Butler

Elizabeth (Betty) M. Butler died May 27, 2016 at age 97. She was born in Beloit, WI and was the child of Rev. James and Mayme Mitcham. Butler earned a BA in social work (magna cum laude) from Howard University in 1941 and an AM from SSA in 1946 and worked at several hospitals before joining SSA in 1959 as a Field Work Assistant Professor. She later became a Field Work Associate Professor and then was a Lecturer from 1979 until she retired in 1983. She joined the SSA Visiting Committee in 1985 and later became a Life Member. She also served on the University of Chicago Women's Board in 1986 through 1994. In her honor, the SSA Alumni Association established the Elizabeth Butler Award in 1990 to recognize a recent SSA graduate who has shown exceptional promise in the field of social work.

Butler was married to the late Roy Butler, a noted Chicago musician. A gifted photographer, she produced stunning personalized notecards with the photos she took of flowers. A member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, she was active in many organizations.

She is survived by her brother, William Mitcham of Atlanta, GA, devoted care-givers Glenda Hopson and Shirley Brown, as well as numerous nephews, nieces, god-children, sorority sisters, and friends.