Born to William Easton and his wife Joan on July 15, 1933, Betty Hardie has never strayed far from South Queensferry.
Growing up in the town put her near the scene of German attacks on the Forth during the Second World War.
She can still remem
ber when the first bombs dropped.
She said: "There was word going round that they were trying to blow up the bridge, but the target was actually an aircraft carrier in the Forth. I was only about seven or eight at the time and I was very frightened."
Betty attended South Queensferry junior secondary, before leaving school at 15 to join the Post Office, beginning a lifelong career serving the postal needs of locals.
She met her husband Willie in the town's dance hall, although she said he was "too polite" to ask her out.
It would take a bout of serious illness and several thousand miles of separation to finally bring them close together.
She said: "I spent my 20th and 21st birthdays in bed after contracting TB, and Willie used to write to me while he was away on national service in Egypt during the Suez crisis.
"His letters were very chatty and towards the end of his service he finally asked me out."
The pair were married in 1957. Willie would go on to become a regional and district councillor for Queensferry, while Betty rose through the ranks of the postal services, spending 14 years in South Queensferry, ten years at Davidson Mains, and ten more years at Holyrood.
She retired in 2002, aged 69, after 16 years as sub-postmaster at the Dalmeny Post Office.
She was also Brown Owl of the 1st Dalmeny Brownies and is still treasurer of the Senior Citizen's Forum (Almond Ward) and Trefoil Guild.
She has been honoured twice for her work with the community, gaining the Forth Bridge Centenary Award for her commitment to the annual Ferry Fair, which she helps organise every year, and earning a Rotary Award for her work with senior citizens.
Now she is ending her association with the senior citizens' group, which first started during the 1970s strikes.
She said: "Due to the shortage of coal we set up a warm room at the Rosebury Hall and I was asked to help with secretarial duties.
"I got on well with senior citizens and enjoyed their reminiscing about old times."
Both Betty and her husband have battled ill health recently, forcing her to step down from the position of chairwoman.
The full article contains 455 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
