Elizabeth (Betsy) Daley's Obituary
Elizabeth (Betsy) Julia Campbell Daley died on March 3, 2022 in Tallahassee, of kidney cancer. She
was born February 1, 1950, in Asheville, NC, to Robert and Anne Campbell. She
attended schools in Winston-Salem, NC, and Nashville, TN, and Tulane University,
University of Copenhagen, Vanderbilt University, and Florida State University.
Following in the footsteps of her late father, Betsy worked as a reporter and editor for
three newspapers. During her years at the Tallahassee Democrat, she was recognized for
reporting about Florida wildlife, rivers, forests, and coasts. She stayed close to former
newsroom colleagues through the years and remained a journalist at heart.
At age 46, she was awarded a J.D. degree by Florida State University College of Law and
held attorney positions at the Florida Supreme Court, Steel Hector & Davis, LLP, and the
Florida Commission on Ethics, from which she retired in 2018. She was honored by the
Florida Government Bar Association as 2014 Florida Government Lawyer of the Year.
She is survived by her husband, Bernard F. Daley, whom she met while both worked at
The Knoxville (TN) Journal, and by her children, Anna D. Clayton (Cameron), of
Tallahassee, and Jonathan C. Daley (Ngozi), of Brooklyn, NY. Betsy and Bernie, married
forty years ago, shared many hours at soccer and baseball fields cheering for their
children and grandchildren. As a family, they explored the American West in summer
and winter. For many years, Betsy was a member of a community steel drum band based
at Leon High School in Tallahassee.
Betsy is also survived by her mother, Anne D. Campbell, and by four cherished
grandchildren: Caliana, Jesse, Chloe, and Johnny. To them, she is Mimi, who welcomed
them after school for art projects, skateboarding, and music.
She is also survived by her brother Walter R. Campbell (Emily Osborn), of Nashville,
TN, sister Catherine C. Breedlove (Michael), of Conyers, GA, nieces Julie Montemerlo
(Marc), Lucy Montemerlo, Molly Campbell, Sophie Campbell, and nephew Baker
Breedlove (Jessie). She leaves to cherish her memory eight friends from a long-time
Tallahassee book group, treasured childhood friends from North Carolina and Tennessee,
and dear newspaper friends.
A celebration of her life will be held on March 10 at 3:00pm at Dorothy Oven Park in Tallahassee. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in her memory to The Coalition for Rainforest Nations (rainforestcoalition.org/donations) or to KCCure Kidney Cancer Research Alliance (kccure.org/donate). Love, serve, remember.
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