Elizabeth 'Betsy' LeGard

From Hoyt Funeral Home.

Elizabeth Thompson ‘Betsy’ LeGard, a New Canaan resident for over 35 years, passed away at home Tuesday after a courageous struggle with a lengthy illness. She was 73.

Betsy grew up in neighboring Ridgefield, the daughter of Melish A. Thompson, a senior executive in the chemical industry, and the former Margery Alexander of Grosse Ile, Michigan.

She graduated from Rosemary Hall School in Greenwich, and later from Mount Vernon College in Washington, D.C.

For many years Betsy was a beloved pre-school teacher at First Presbyterian Nursery in New Canaan. An outstanding athlete, she volunteered as a girls’ field hockey coach at New Canaan High School and was proficient in golf, tennis and virtually any other sporting endeavor in which she participated. Betsy was a long-time member of Woodway Country Club, a past member of the New Canaan Field Club, and also held memberships in The Moorings Yacht & Country Club and Quail Valley Country Club, both of Vero Beach, FL.

Betsy is survived by her husband of 52 years, Ed; their daughter, Whitney Williams and her husband Nick of New Canaan; their son Prescott LeGard and his wife Kelly of Mission Hills, Kansas; her five grandchildren Victoria, Chase and Kent Williams, and Henry and Libby LeGard; and her beloved and indefatigable bichon frise Rugby. She is also survived by her sister Julie T. Merriman of Foster, RI, and her brother Dr. Melish A. Thompson Jr., of Mequon, WI.

A memorial service and celebration of Betsy’s life will be held on Friday, March 4 at 2 p.m. at the Congregational Church of New Canaan.

The family would like to express its sincere thanks to Ray Boller and the extraordinary health care staff at BrightStar Care of Stanford, as well as to Dr. Richard Westfal of New Canaan, for their constant and unsurpassed care and support given to Betsy throughout her long and valiant struggle.

In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made in Betsy’s memory to the New Canaan Volunteer Ambulance Corps, 182 South Avenue, New Canaan, CT 06840, or to the Norwalk Hospital Foundation, 30 Stevens Street, Norwalk, CT 06850.