Betsy Anne Bunting Boddie

ROCKY MOUNT – Betsy Anne Bunting Boddie, age 99, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, February 25, 2026. Born in Nashville, NC on April 30, 1926, she was the daughter of the late Thomas George “Tom” Bunting and Violet Huntington Taylor Bunting. She was also preceded in death by her husband, Nicholas Bunn Boddie, Jr. and her sister, Violet Taylor Bunting.

An extremely loving and devoted mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and a dear, kind, thoughtful and generous friend to many, Betsy will be deeply missed and never forgotten.

Betsy graduated from Nashville High School in 1944 and from Peace College in 1946. Her life was centered on her love and devotion to her family and service and commitment to her church and community.

She has been a member of First Presbyterian Church in Rocky Mount since she married her dear husband, Nick, in 1953. She taught Sunday School and Bible School throughout her children’s childhood years and served as a Deacon and Elder as well as chairperson of numerous committees including World Mission which required securing, packing, and shipping sample medicine and vitamins to missionaries in Africa and Korea. She was also responsible for securing Dr Norman Vincent Peale as a speaker at First Presbyterian Church.

Betsy was an active member of the Rocky Mount Junior Guild for thirteen years having served as Vice President and, also, as Sustaining Advisor during her sustaining years.

She chaired the Harriet Lynn Norris Memorial Scholarship Committee for the NC Quarter Horse Association for fifteen years. Serving as a member of the Board of Directors for Christ Child Day Care Center in Rocky Mount for over ten years brought her great joy, often hosting numerous outings for the children in her home.

Her involvement, love for and commitment to the YWCA ran very deep beginning as a Board member in 1973, continuing until the completion of the merger with the YMCA in 1999. During this time she served as Vice President and President, Co-Chaired the $1,000,000 Capital Campaign for the construction of the new facility, and then proceeded with the tremendous responsibility of serving as Building Development Chair encompassing land acquirement, facility design, supervision of construction and interior furnishings.

Betsy’s love and commitment for the Salvation Army was equal to that of the YWCA. She was a Salvation Army Board member for almost twenty years and served as Board Chair in 1996. Throughout her tenure, she chaired the Christmas Committee, which secured volunteers for bell ringing. Her efforts

with this project resulted in doubling the profits from previous years when there were very few volunteer bell ringers.

Also, very near and dear to Betsy’s heart was her beloved alma mater, Peace College, where she very easily and proudly convinced one daughter and two granddaughters to follow in her footsteps. As a proud alum, she served on the Alumnae Association, the Board of Visitors, and the Board of Trustees, but her greatest joy in serving Peace College came from opening her beautiful home to prospective Peace girls and Peace alums.

Not to allow her allegiance to Peace compete with local schools, Betsy, also, was a strong supporter of NC Wesleyan College, serving on the Board of Visitors and as husband-wife co-chairs for “A Day for Wesleyan”. She also had a very strong love for and commitment to her children’s and grandchildren’s alma mater, Rocky Mount Academy. She was a member of the Board of Directors for eight years and served as co-chair and chair of the RMA Benefit Auction, all during her “grandmother years”.

Betsy also served as a Board member of the Kiwanis Club, Community Hospital of Rocky Mount, Covenant Homes, and was a charter member of the Tar River Orchestra and Chorus. She and Nick graciously opened their horse barn and pasture grounds for approximately ten of the Orchestra’s annual Spring Concerts.

In 1991, Betsy was delighted to be one of twelve governor appointees for the Highway Beautification Council. She was perfect for this task because she did love to make things beautiful, and especially so with pretty flowers along our state highways!

In 1992, Betsy was presented the Peace College Distinguished Alumna Award, and in 1995, she was honored to be the East Carolina Council of Boy Scouts of America Distinguished Citizen Award recipient.

One of the greatest honors Betsy ever received was an invitation to serve as a Torchbearer for the 1996 Summer Olympics torch relay. She very proudly and excitedly carried an Olympic relay torch held high for one block in downtown Raleigh as it passed through many city streets and blocks on the way to its final destination in Atlanta! How very exciting!!

Even though Betsy filled so much of her life with community involvement, her greatest love and joy by far was her family. She and Nick spent many, many weekends throughout their daughters’ teenage years as the best horse show parents on the circuit working hard as groomers and stable hands, enjoying those fun times with their girls as the years flew by. She exploded with happiness when grandchildren entered her life, and she spent every moment she possibly could with them and squeezed in all her volunteer work in the time that was left. Caring for and doing kind and generous things for her family was her most important priority, but the time she spent with her children and grandchildren at Bryanna and at Figure 8 (her piece of “Heaven on Earth”) was by far the greatest joy in her life. She was truly the best “Bebe” ever!!!

Betsy is survived by her son, Clanton Jones “Mac” McInnis and wife Mary Kay; her daughters, Bryan Boddie Hancock and husband Mike; Anne Boddie Mosley and husband Michael; her grandchildren, Ryan McInnis (Meredith); Catherine Hancock Perry (Chuck); Rebekah Hancock Conrad (Chris); Nicholas Mosley (Katie); and Suzanna Mosley; her great grandchildren, Atlas and Sterling McInnis, and Carleton and Sinclair Mosley.

The family would like to express their tremendous appreciation for the kind and loving care that the many dear angels at Navion Assisted Living gave their sweet mother each and every day for the past seven years.

In celebration of her life, a memorial service will be held Thursday, March 5th, 2026 at 4:00 PM at First Presbyterian Church of Rocky Mount with the Reverends Peter Bynum, Jacob Kennedy, and Ally Pixa officiating. The family would like to invite all to a reception in the Fellowship Hall of the church immediately following the service.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to First Presbyterian Church, 153 North Church Street, Rocky Mount, NC 27804 or the Salvation Army, 1000 Hunter Hill Road, Rocky Mount, NC 27803.

Arrangements entrusted to Wheeler & Woodlief Funeral Home & Cremation Services, 1130 N. Winstead Avenue, Rocky Mount, NC 27804. You may share memories and condolences with the family by visiting www.wheelerwoodlief.com.