Bertha Lee Battey Toole

Bertha Lee Battey Toole, beloved wife of William Francis Toole, died in Cashiers, NC on Sunday, July 24. She was 85 years old.

A memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, July 27, 2011 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Augusta, GA, with the Reverend Doctor Richard E. Sanders officiating. The family will receive friends in the River Room immediately following the service.

Mrs. Toole was born in Augusta, GA in 1925 and was the daughter of Bertha Miller Barrett and Lansing Burroughs Lee, a founding member of the Augusta National Golf Club. She was the granddaughter of Thomas Barrett, mayor of Augusta. She graduated from Tubman High School and Sweet Briar College in Virginia.

She was preceded in death by her first husband, Dr. Alfred Mann Battey, Jr., the father of her children. She is survived by her husband William Toole and her seven children: Therese Battey Evans, widow of David; Lee Battey Nordmann and her husband Patrick, of Augusta; Grace Battey Reed and her husband Frederick, of Charleston, SC; Alfred Mann Battey III and his wife Ellen, of Brunswick; Elizabeth Battey Elliott and her husband Hoyt, of Jasper, AL; Caroline Battey Brady and her husband Raymond, of Augusta; and Thomas Barrett Battey and his wife Amanda, of Augusta. She is also survived by sixteen grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Mrs. Toole began residence in New York City in 1977 after her marriage to William Toole. In New York she was a docent at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where she conducted guided tours specializing in American Art. As a member of the Metropolitan Opera Guild, she volunteered backstage for Met auditions. In 1982, the Tooles returned to Augusta when Mr. Toole joined the faculty of Augusta College.

She was baptized and confirmed at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, where she was a member of the Altar Guild. She was an active member of The Junior League of Augusta, Sand Hills Garden Club, Gateway Garden Club, and the Colonial Dames of America. As a member of the Board of Directors of the Tuttle Newton Home, she served on the Mothers’ Aid Committee. She served on the board of the Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art and was president of the Augusta Symphony Guild. She was a chairman of the Augusta Symphony Cotillion and president of St. Mary’s Home and School Association. Mrs. Toole was a founding member of the Augusta Assembly. As a gifted singer, she participated in numerous concerts of the Augusta Collegium Musicum and the Augusta Choral Society throughout the years.

Mrs. Toole loved Augusta and was vitally interested in the things that have made Augusta a lively and beautiful city. She was admired for her floral arrangements, sharing this gift with many. Her musical activities, her home and garden, and most of all her husband, family, and friends were the focal points of her life.

If desired, memorials may be made to Tuttle Newton Home, 2196 Central Avenue, Augusta, GA 30904 or Trees for Augusta, P.O. Box 40084, Augusta, GA 30909.