Betty Greenwood passed away peacefully on December 23, 2025 at the age of 97. She was born in Montclair, New Jersey, to Frederick W. Schaumburg and Marietta Copeland Schaumburg, and married Charles "Chuck" Greenwood, upon his graduation from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1950. They were together for 67 years until his passing in 2017.
Betty poured her intelligence, wit, charm, and creativity into each of her many roles in life. As a mother of four children and the wife of a Navy Chaplain who was sometimes stationed overseas for as long as six months at a time, she found herself also taking on the role of a counselor to other women struggling in their roles as Navy wives. This work eventually earned her an award of merit from Admiral Elmo Zumwalt.
As Betty and Chuck's children began to leave home for college, Betty's keen interest in political and social issues led her to became active in a new chapter of the National Organization for Women. With added confidence, she started a new chapter of her life as well. Inspired by puppeteers like Shari Lewis and Jim Henson, and moved by her lifelong love and concern for animals, she learned ventriloquism and started using animal puppets in shows to teach environmental conservation. Her work gave her many interesting opportunities -- from helping the survival rate of migrating cranes by wearing a disguise and using puppetry to feed them, to performing in Japan, Germany, the Netherlands, and China.
Betty is survived by her children, Larry Greenwood, Gary Greenwood, Carolyn Greenwood, and Cheryl Falkenburry, her nine grandchildren, and eight great grandchildren. Her warmth, wit, extraordinary talent, and her limitless love will be greatly missed. Memorial donations can be made to the International Crane Foundation at https://savingcranes.org or the Jane Goodall Institute at https://give.janegoodall.org.
