Etta North O’Connor in the Robe of Achievement

Etta North O’Connor was presented with the Robe in 1982. She was a devoted member of the SDB church for more than 50 years, serving as treasurer of the Womens’s Society, treasurer and secretary of the Sabbath School, assistant treasurer of her church and a choir member. She loved to sing.

She routinely extended hospitality to many visiting SDB’s, dignitaries, and ministerial students attending 3-week institutes.

Etta worked at the Plainfield denominational headquarters in New Jersey from 1928 until it moved in 1982. (She was part of the crew that helped move things out when the headquarters there closed.) Many people who had contact with our denomination by mail, phone, or in person were blessed by her personal attention. She knows nearly everyone in the denomination and has been in charge of the Sabbath Recorder subscriptions and the mailing list, often writing personal notes on renewal notices she sent out. She preformed proof-reading and general office work for the headquarters. She stayed working there for three months without pay to help a small crew clear out the building, answer the telephone, doorbell, go to the Post Office for mail, etc. She continued post this to take care of all the mail that continued to come to the office box.

She did not attend many General Conferences, choosing in lieu of that to remain on the job, allowing others to attend the sessions. Etta was a remarkable person who viewed her retirement as an opportunity to keep busier than ever with the work of the Women’s Society, Sabbath School, and that of the Plainfield Church.