Charlotte mayor declares ‘Miss Betty Day’ for longtime Queens employee. ‘Inspiration.’

Not many people celebrate 60 years of service in a job. Especially not their first job. Betty Davis has spent six decades at Queens University in Charlotte, and hundreds of faculty, staff and students showed up to celebrate on Thursday.

In a celebration staged in the university’s Sarah Belk Gambrell Center, one of the surprise guests was Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles. She remembered another important day when Davis — known on campus as “Miss Betty” — played an important role in her own life.

“Miss Betty holds a special place in my heart,” Lyles said, her voice trembling.

“When I came to Queens in 1969, there weren’t many women of color.” Lyles thought about leaving Queens because she didn’t feel like she belonged. She said Miss Betty “was one of the women who stood up and said, ‘Baby you can do this.’ So she has been an inspiration to me since then. Also, my mother said she’d already paid the tuition.”

Lyles presented Davis with a proclamation from the city of Charlotte declaring Aug. 25 as “Miss Betty Day.” Davis is 77.

Miss Betty celebrated at Queens University

Davis started working as a housekeeper at Queens on Aug. 10, 1962, when she was 17. She has served in multiple roles since then, including housemother, assistant to the president, and several positions in university dining services. She has no plans to retire and said she would work as long as Queens lets her.

Queens President Dan Lugo pointed to Jan. 28, 2021 as a day that was especially important for him — Miss Betty’s birthday. Despite campus shutdowns at the height of the COVID pandemic, Lugo said the community rallied, signed a card, and he delivered flowers to Miss Betty’s home.

“You know how you know you’re important? When your birthday’s important,” Lugo said. “When we celebrate, like, you know, Abraham Lincoln and George Washington and Miss Betty.

“And we will never stop doing that.”

At a news conference after the celebration, Davis said the best part of her job is what she calls “my kids” — the students — and saying good morning every day.

“The biggest change in my life when I came here was when I got my own boys,” Davis said. “Because it was an all-girls school when I came. And every morning when I got to work in the morning, I was always shouting to run Davidson College boys away.”

Davis said she asked President Billy Wireman about letting her get her own boys. Wireman told her he would think about it. In 1988, Queens became coeducational. “So he did, and I got my own boys, and I was happy.”

Davis, who is 4-foot-6, initially declined a position at Queens because she didn’t feel tall enough to empty trash cans. Asked how she wanted to be remembered, she replied: “That Miss Betty brought joy to Queens.”

Caroline Willingham is a student in the James L. Knight School of Communication at Queens University of Charlotte, which provides the news service in support of local community news.

This story was originally published August 26, 2022 at 9:58 AM.