Elizabeth Ann Bloomer was born on 8 April 1918 in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She first married William Warren and this marriage ended in divorce. In 1948 she married Gerald Rudolph Ford. They have four children – Michael, Jack, Steven and Susan.

Many of Betty Ford’s Grand Rapids friends think of her fondly as an attractive and vital woman, and recall her early years in Grand Rapids.

She attended Central High School. In her autobiography, "The Times of My Life", points out that she enjoyed learning and her high school years were happy ones.

Betty’s goal was to become a professional dancer. Eventually she studied with Martha Graham in New York and became a member of the Martha Graham dance troupe. At home she occasionally assisted a dynamic dancing teacher, Calla Travis, who instructed young women and men in "social dancing" which included the waltz, and the fox trot.

Her husband was Michigan Congressman for 26 years when he became president at the resignation of President Richard Milhous Nixon. Betty became first lady from August 8, 1974 until January 20, 1977. In 1987 she released her autobiography entitled, "The Betty Ford Story" ("The Times of My Life") (1987), which was made into a movie the same year. The Betty Ford Center is located in Rancho Mirage, California. Both President Ford and Betty will be buried on the grounds of the Gerald R. Ford Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan. (President Ford died in December, 2006.) 

In more recent years, Betty Ford who is widely known for her civil interests, was honored by the Michigan Hall of Fame in 1987 with the following commendation:

"As the wife of Michigan Congressman (later Minority Leader, Vice-President and President) Gerald Ford, Betty Ford’s life has been constantly mirrored in the national press. Under the circumstances, she might have confined herself to a social-cultural leadership role (a role for which she was especially qualified as a former member of the Martha Graham dance troupe), but she opted instead to devote herself to public causes such as the Equal Rights Amendment, which she strongly supported. In addition, Betty Ford has been very much involved with the American Cancer Society, the Arthritis Foundation and national programs for mental health and underprivileged children. Mrs. Ford has become best known, perhaps, for her courage and candor in coping with personal crisis. When stricken with breast cancer, she faced the situation openly, and in so doing she gave courage to others. Her public acknowledgment of cancer not only called attention to the dangers of the disease for women, but also to its means of detection and treatment.

It is for her personal struggle with alcohol and drug abuse that Betty Ford has become most widely known and appreciated in later years. She overcame a serious problem of dependency through an exercise of will and courage. The overcoming of her personal problem was not alone sufficient for her, however. As with her cancer, Betty Ford sought ways in which to share her experience with others in a very public and beneficial way. Not only has she devoted her life over the past nine years to the helping of others with drug dependency problems, the funds she has raised through her speaking engagements and other public appearances have served to build the Betty Ford Center for Drug Rehabilitation at the Eisenhower Medical Center in California (dedicated October 3, 1982). As President of the Betty Ford Center, she has become a lay expert on the problems of drug abuse and has provided courage, understanding and treatment for countless thousands of individuals who have taken the personal example to heart. And, for this California Medical Society and numerous other organizations have given her personal citations.

Susan is currently very involved with the Betty Ford Center taking over many of her mother’s obligations (2007).