Obituary: Betty Leifer

Betty Leifer was born and raised in Philadelphia. She attended Clara Barton elementary school, Olney High school, Gratz College, and graduated Temple University in 1962. She also obtained a master’s degree in Demography and Statistics from the University of Pennsylvania in 1980.

In her working career, she worked in statistics at several major Philadelphia hospitals, and ran the Clinical Research Computer Center at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital. Betty was a dedicated and passionate volunteer who spent countless hours on various community issues over many decades.

She volunteered for Common Cause, the League of Women Voters, provided tax filing assistance, and was a long time reader for the Radio Station for the Blind. She married Philip Leifer in 1961, and they lived in center city Philadelphia where they raised three daughters. After many years of living in center city, they moved to Lansdale where they enjoyed a suburban life.

In their retired life, Betty and Phil moved to Freedom Village at Brandywine. There, Betty ran the Book Club, was a member of the League of Women Voters, and was instrumental in promoting voter registration in the community. She led the Movie committee, participating in selecting movies to be shown, and trained residents in the use of the auditorium audio-visual equipment to show the movies. Betty made many wonderful friends during her 14-year stay at the Village.

Early in 2024, Betty received a diagnosis of liver cancer. After a long period of illness, she passed away on July 6 at the age of 83. Betty will be sorely missed by her husband, children and seven grandchildren, and
her many friends at Freedom Village.