The culture of Mexico is a cornucopia that overflows with music, dance, and fiesta; where her father danced to the mambos of Perez Prado and Benny Moré, and in the Teatro Blanquita with Sasha Montenegro. Her mother had an incredible musical memory and just by hearing one note, she could tell you the name of the song and would begin to sing it, complete with all its verses. She sang to people, birds, and life in general; and with her Bombas Yucatecas (a type of ribald rhyming joke from Yucatan) she gave happiness to everyone.
Betty’s life as a dancer began in her mother’s womb. When Irma was dancing with her husband, she went into labor and Betty was born in one of the oldest, and most historic colonias of Mexico City, la Colonia Roma. And, she had the good fortune to live in the house of a famous Mexican singer who for many years, was the lead singer of Trio los Panchos, Enrique Cazares, and was the cousin of her father, Gaspar Herrera.
Learning the art of dancing in Kindergarten was a requirement, and her uncle Enrique Sabido, a dynamic young man, and a lover of dance, taught her rock and roll, the twist, the jerk, cumbia, and salsa.
Eventually the family moved across the street from a military depot where Pancho Villa had once been held prisoner during the revolution. That building was demolished, and as they began new construction, she played amongst the ruins of the ancient Tlatelolcans.
Betty had a very happy childhood, filled with sporting activities such as; basketball, vollyball, javalin, shotput, discus, relay racing, ping-pong, and skating, which gave her the opportunity to earn many medals. With the club, Los Exploradores de Mexico she hiked up the flanks of the most famous mountains that surround the Valley of Mexico, one of them being el Cerro de la Estrella (the Hill of the Star).
As a reward at the end of every school year, her parents took the family to a different state of Mexico, from the very calm waters of Acapulco, to the white sand beaches of La Riviera Maya.
She witnessed one of the saddest chapters in Mexican history in 1968, at la Plaza de las Tres Culturas: The acrid smell of tear gas; the shots ringing out; the screams of the terrified people running from the granaderos were heard as the Mexican government shot and killed hundreds of student protestors, an event vividly described by the famous author, Elena Poniatowska.
Betty’s family moved to la Colonia Condessa, just a few blocks from the Castle of Chapultapec where she communed with nature every morning, and where the famous Mexican dictator, Porfirio Diaz, once lived: and also Maximilian I, Emperor of Mexico and archduke of the Hapsburg Empire, and his wife, Carlota, who at first sight fell in love with the people and the country, but that love was, unfortunately, not returned.
Betty studied to be a Bilingual Secretary, and at the age of 16 began to work for la Secretaría de Industria y Comercio, but then she had to say goodbye to Mexico because she became engaged and eventually was married in Santa Monica, California.
In the city of Los Angeles, she found a multicolored tapestry of cultures, and each one generously opened their arms to her.
When she studied at City College in Los Angeles, dancing became a significant part of her life, and most importantly she maintained high academic standards and made the Dean's List of Honor three years in a row. She took classes in tap, ballet, jazz, flamenco, and belly dancing. At Glendale College, she studied Turkish and Armenian dance with Tom Bozigian, and also studied Romanian dance with Teodoro Vasilescu, President of the National Association of Choreographers of Romania, and his wife, Lia. And at UCLA she studied Renaissance dance.
With Okima Kapaku, she danced Hawaiian and Tahitian, performing at the Lotus Festival, the James R. Armstrong Theatre in Torrence, the University of San Diego, in many restaurants like Ports O' Call, (now history) and in many private parties.
With Rolando Reyes, she was in the "Ballet Folklorico," a group founded to promote the traditions of Mexican heritage, arts, and culture, and she performed at Cinco de Mayo, The Children's Fair, The Day of the Dead, Mexican Independence Day, Christmas, and the Hispanic Heritage Month, and many places more.
Tani, a teacher from Jakarta, taught her Indonesian and Filipino dances and she performed at USC, Pasadena City College, Redlands University, and in many libraries. With Merlika, a colleague, they performed Irish dances. And in synagogues and private parties, they performed Jewish dances, also assisted by Hissa Yoo, a Korean dance director.
Betty danced with the Taiwanese and the Scottish communities, and with the Chinese she danced at the San Gabriel Mission Playhouse. For ten years, she performed traditional Japanese dance in the most beautiful kimonos with the teacher Kawamura Hoshun Sensei in the group Nippon Minyo Kenkyu Kai Hoshun Kai at the Aratani Theater, the Quiet Cannon, the Miyako Hotel, the Cherry Blossom Festival, The Torrence Cultural Center, the Nisei Week Parades, and many venues in Los Angeles.
She has learned dances in other countries like in Latvia, the Philipines, and Myanmar, where a teacher encouraged her to come back and dance with her troupe, a moment that is described more fully in the book which she co-authored with Norman Lichty, under the pen name Elizabeth Herrera Sabido, entitled Black Hole With a Heart of Gold.
She has also danced around the world: To mention just a few; Dubai, Uzbekistan, Israel, Japan, Singapore, and to the pyramids of Chichen Itza, in Mexico.
Betty worked for the Los Angeles Unified School District as an educator, and at Los Angeles High School as an international dance teacher and took her students to dance at The Staples Center, The Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, the Castaways Restaurant, etc.
She joined Koroyar, the Eastern European dance group founded by Richard Unciano. They performed at venues such as the Museum of History and Art in Ontario, and St. Mary's Macedonian Orthodox Church, where Norman Lichty, who played bass with the group, asked Betty for her phone number, and from then on their lives came together.
Under his tutelage, she became a musician, learning to play recorder, penny whistle, flute, piccolo, clarinet, saxophone, violin, piano, and most importantly, to read music.
Together, they have traveled the length and breadth of five continents and visited countries such as Azerbaijan, where there is a Zoroastrian temple called "The Fire Temple of Bacu," where the eternal flame is still burning along with their beliefs, "Good Thought, Good Deed, and Good Word."
In Skopje Macedonia, Norman and Betty visited a museum that marks the site where the humanistic Mother Teresa was born.
And seven miles from the most sacred river in India, the Ganges, they journeyed to another sacred place called Sarnath, where Buddha gave his first sermon and taught his disciples that the root of all suffering, is desire.