Obituary of Elizabeth H Cornwall

Mrs. Cornwall, passed away peacefully at home on March 10, 2013. "Betty" was the daughter of Charles Hillard and Rose Boyer Hillard, and was born in 1923 in Gladstone, NJ where her ancestral home is now the site of the Gill-St. Bernards School. She graduated from Peapack High School and Berkley Secretarial School. While working at the New York Trust Company she met and later married Charles B. Eddy, Jr. They moved to Short Hills, NJ in 1950. Mr. Eddy predeceased her in 1979. In 1986 Betty married Joseph C. Cornwall. In 1999 made their home at Fellowship Village in Basking Ridge. NJ. Mr. Cornwall predeceased her in 2007. Betty committed her time and energy to serving her community. In Short Hills she was a founding member of the Millburn-Short Hills Volunteer First Aid Squad and the Township Beautification League. She was president of the Cora Hartshorn Arboretum, Chairman of the Shade Tree Advisory Board and a member of the Green Acres Committee. Betty had a passion for gardening and was blessed with a green thumb. At daybreak she could often be found tending her gardens. Betty was Vice President of the Short Hills Garden Club, which awarded her the Achievement Cup Twice, for the planning and execution of the Wallbridge Memorial Garden in Taylor Park in Milburn and Co-Chair of the Zone IV Meeting. A member of the Garden Club of America, she received the Medal of Merit and the Horticultural Committee Award. Betty was a self-described "detail person". As an accomplished needle-woman she created exquisite crewel embroidery for which she received a Merit Award from the Embroiderer's Guild of America. Later in life, she painted watercolors of the flowers she loved so dearly. She is predeceased by her sister, Ruth Hillard Laporte. She is survived by her daughter, Ellen Eddy Thorndike, of Stowe VT and her husband Alan; her son Charles B. Eddy III of Los Gatos CA and his wife Mitzie; her two grandchildren, N. Porter Thorndike of Charlestown MA and Ted Thorndike of Stowe VT; her great granddaughter, Cameron Thorndike of Charleston MA ; her step children, Betsy Cornwall of New York, NY; John Cornwall of New York NY; Joseph Cornwall of Providence RI, and Pamela Cornwall Duncan of Atlanta, GA;, and twelve step grandchildren. Memorial donations may be sent to the Cora Hartshorn Arboretum, 324 Forest Drive South, Short Hills, NJ, 07078 or The Legacy Fund at Fellowship Village, 8000 Fellowship Road, Basking Ridge, NJ 07920. A Memorial Service will be held at Christ Church in Short Hills, NJ, on Saturday, April 13, 2103 at 12 Noon. For more information please call the funeral home at 908-766-0250 or to light an online condolence candle visit our website www.gcfuneralhome.com.