Friday, January 6, 2017
Betsy was far and away the coolest kid at TAC (Teen Age Camp) in Milford, PA 1975. She was folksy, country, even a little redneck and completely comfortable in her skin. She called herself "Banjo Betsy Fein," wore flannel plaid shirts, and completely inhabited a personality I don't know to this day whether it was organic or schtick. She was hysterically witty, cute as can be (and the closest we had to real blonde in Jewish summer camp), I had an enormous crush on her. She could make me belly laugh with a facial expression or a sarcastic quip.
Our friendship continued sporadically for several years after camp, as her friend Susan dated my friend Mitch. I'd visit Mitch, sometimes for several days (I'd moved with my parents to Virginia), and seeing Betsy would be a highlight of each visit. She was pure joy. One time Mitch and I got to her house and she was hopping around, literally shaking with excitement. "You HAVE to hear this, you have to hear it!" she shouted. She had just bought the album Fragile, by Yes, and she turned up the speakers unthinkably loud and put the needle on the record. The song "Roudabout" came on she started dancing / air guitaring / and lip syncing along to music the likes of which I'd never heard before. Even today when that song comes on I'm immediately transported into that moment. I spent an hour watching her immersive performance and it was one of the best hours I've ever spent.
To me, Betsy had everything: brains, wit, beauty and a bit of Country.
Betsy, Rest in Peace.
