Betty Riggs was born in 1911 and went to school at the Methodist Ladies College (now Annesley College) and the Presbyterian Girls' College (now Seymour College). She became a nurse at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in 1930. In 1936 she was nursing in Scotland so was there for the coronation of Edward VIII. Riggs became ill in Scotland and went to a sanatorium in Switzerland and then returned to Adelaide. She joined the 2/4th Australian General Hospital and went to the Middle East where her first tour of duty was to nurse soldiers from Tobruk. Riggs then went to Jerusalem and Colombo before returning to Australia. Upon her return to Adelaide, Riggs cared for her aunt Emily Verco and completed a course in infant welfare. She accepted a job at the Adelaide City Council Health Department. Following her retirement at 60 she started working as a relief nurse at the Christian Rest Home and travelled to Europe and China, India and Bangkok. A member of the Lyceum Club, Betty Riggs participated in all the activities. |
