Remembering Betta: William & Mary Law School Community Gathers to Honor a Legend
“A cornerstone of the community.” “Fervently loyal.” “The epitome of a citizen lawyer.”
“A champion of the Law Schoo1.”
These were just some of the words used to describe Betta Labanish, William & Mary Law School’s longtime administrative assistant who passed away on January 6, 2024. Betta served the law school for 35 years, first in the Wolf Law Library for 30 years and then in administration, making it her mission to gently guide and welcome anyone she met and doing so up until weeks before her passing. View Memories of Betta.
The law community gathered in force on Thursday, January 18, to celebrate Betta’s life and share fond memories. Hosting the event, Dean A. Benjamin Spencer referred to Betta as “a cherished member of our professional family and one of its leading cheerleaders.” View a gallery of the celebration.
“As we reflect on the time we were fortunate to share with Betta, let us remember the laughter, the camaraderie, and the countless moments that defined her spirit,” Spencer said. “Betta touched our lives and found ways of leaving behind a legacy that will continue to inspire us.”
Spencer then introduced James Heller, the former director of the Wolf Law Library who hired Betta in 1989 as a secretary. With her strong administrative and people skills and a background as a corporate executive secretary, she soon became Heller’s indispensable administrative assistant.
“Betta was like a human-seeking missile who knew where anyone who needed a hand was,” Heller said. “Obviously, the law school was her jurisdiction, and her territory was anything, everywhere, doing anything for anyone.”
Heller produced smiles from the audience when he added that, despite her height of under five feet tall, one didn't mess with Betta. “She had a spine of steel,” he said. “She was fervently loyal to her library family, to the law school, and to the college.”
William & Mary President Emeritus and former Law Dean Taylor Reveley shared how Betta knew everyone very well in the law community, and cared for them all, especially the students.
“She cared, too, for the institution, for the law school itself, for how it was doing,” Reveley added. “For Betta, the law school was family, and she wanted her family to thrive. When I returned to the law school after being away for 10 years on the main campus, Betta could not have welcomed me back more warmly or more thoroughly.”
Betta was also known for taking visitors on impromptu tours. Dan Scianandre, Senior Associate Dean for Administration, Finance, and Operations, and Betta’s last boss, shared a note in which a visitor wrote Betta: “I recently stopped by to look around at law school, and you graciously provided me and my family with the best tour they ever had at the college. I wanted to reach out to you and thank you again for taking the time to share your perspective on William & Mary Law School.”
Scianandre asked the law community to not only recall the rules Betta lived by, but also the qualities that made her truly special. “She was more than just a colleague, she was a friend, a champion of this law school and a source of inspiration,” he said. “Her dedication, resilience and kindness created a unique plan and left a lasting impression on all of us.”
Stephen Steward ’24, President of the Student Bar Association, remembered many quiet conversations with Betta. He also appreciated her ability to teach through example.
“She had no children, and while that’s technically true, maybe she had no biological children of her own, I would argue that she had hundreds of children in the students that walked in these doors over the years,” Steward said. “While neither a professor nor a lawyer at the school, I think that through her kindness, compassion, empathy, and caring that she embodied all the ideals of the citizen lawyer, and to anyone who watched her, it’s been some of the best teaching.”
Dana Call ’24, an International Competition Team representative, echoed Steward’s sentiments, praising Betta’s genuine care and love for the student body. “She truly set a phenomenal example for us, one that I hope we can inch closer to every day by remembering her caring nature and willingness to help others, regardless if she met them 20 seconds or 20 years ago.”
On April 3, 2023, student leaders in the Public Service Fund (PSF) surprised Betta with a certificate making her an Honorary General Board Member of the organization. The recognition thanked Betta "for her continuing generosity, support, and dedication for serving our students."
Bette Rubin ’24, a PSF representative, remembered Betta as PSF’s “biggest benefactor.”
“Every time we sold merchandise in the lobby, Betta was there to buy something, the only one to pay us in checks,” Rubin said. “I'll never forget how happy she was to walk around the law school sporting our latest tee shirt, which she would buy in a size far too big for her and wear over her regular clothes.”
Rubin recounted how Betta noticed how much work PSF students put into everything they do, as students and as an organization. And Betta supported them in kind, whether it was loaning them her carts to haul boxes prior to an event, letting them use her desk to collect thank you notes written by members to donors and supporters of the annual PSF auction, or supporting them with her own generous donations.
The ceremony ended with the dedication of a memorial plaque in Betta’s honor at the welcome desk in the front lobby, hereafter known as the “Betta Labanish Front Desk.”
“In honoring her, we acknowledge not just her professional contributions, but also her belief in our students and our staff, in our faculty and everyone who comes through those doors,” Dean Spencer said. “She was the epitome of a citizen lawyer, and hopefully we can all live up to that standard.”
Donations in Betta’s memory may be made to William & Mary Law School’s Public Service Fund at http://impact.wm.edu/labanish. Postal mailed donations may be sent to William & Mary Law School, P.O. Box 3527, Williamsburg, VA 23187-3527, noting the contribution is for the Public Service Fund in Betta’s memory. Memorial contributions also may be made to organizations of your choice.