Garry Betty
American businessman
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Charles Garrett "Garry" Betty (March 4, 1957 – January 2, 2007) was President and CEO of EarthLink, a large American Internet service provider, from 1996 until his death. During his leadership of EarthLink, Betty grew the customer base from just under 100,000 members to over 5,000,000.
Garry Betty | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 4, 1957 Huntsville, Alabama, U.S. |
| Died | January 2, 2007 (aged 49) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Georgia Institute of Technology[1] |
| Occupations | CEO and President of EarthLink (1996–2007) |
| Spouse | Kathy Betty (?-Present)[1] |
| Relatives | Rena Lane (sister)[1] |
Early life and education
Betty was born in Huntsville, Alabama and grew up in Columbus, Georgia. Betty graduated from Columbus High School in 1975 [2] He then attended the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, Georgia where he received a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering in 1979.[3]
Career
Betty worked for IBM, and received the IBM President's Award in 1982 for his work on the original IBM PC.[1]
Betty subsequently became president and CEO of Digital Communications Associates and for some time he was the New York Stock Exchange's youngest listed CEO.[4]
Awards
Betty received Young Alumnus of the Year honors from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1993 and was inducted into the Georgia Technology Hall of Fame in 2005.[5]
Cancer diagnosis and death
EarthLink reported in a press release on November 21, 2006 (also reported by major news agencies including the Wall Street Journal) that Betty had been diagnosed with a serious form of cancer which required him to take an undetermined leave of absence. The company announced that the Board of Directors named Mike Lunsford, Vice-President of Voice and Access, as interim CEO.[6] EarthLink announced on January 3, 2007, that Betty had died at the age of 49 from complications of adrenal cortical cancer.[7]