Betty Ford Biography

Betty Ford



Betty Ford was born on April 8, 1918 in Chicago. She lived in Denver and

Chicago and then moved to Grand Rapids when she was 2 years old. Her father

was William S. Bloomer who working for the Royal Rubber Company and

traveled, trying to get companies to buy their products. Her mother was Hortense

Neahr Bloomer who constantly wrote letters to her husband.

She had two older brothers, Bill and Bob. Bill was 7 years older and Bob

was 5 years older. Every summer they went up to their cottage at Whitefish Lake.

They also went up on weekends and had many friends over. She played the

piccolo, piano, and took dance lessons. She was also a tomboy and wanted to play

sports with her brothers and their friends.

In 1929 when the stock market crashed they lost a lot of money and had to

cut back on things. She had to help around the house more. When she was fourteen

she was confirmed an Episcopalian. Her father was a Christian Scientist and her

mother was an Episcopalian.

She went to high school at Central High in Grand Rapids. Every day after

school she went straight to her dance lessons. On Saturday afternoons she gave

dancing lessons for 50 cents.

When she was 16 her father died of carbon monoxide poisoning while

working on his car. Things got a little bit rougher because of the Great Depression.

Then in 1936 she graduated from Central High. When she was 18 and 19 she went

to Bennington School of Dance. She was happy because she was able to dance 8

hours a day.  

After Bennington, she went to New York with her room mate Natalie

Harris. They settled in a one bedroom apartment on Sixth Avenue. They walked to

Martha Graham's studio on Fifth Avenue. They only got paid $10 a concert so

they had to get jobs during the day and take the dancing lessons at night.

She went back to Grand Rapids and started her own dance group. She

married Bill Warren and divorced him 5 years later. She got a job at

Herpolsheimer's as the fashion... [continues]

Read full essay