Bella Jarrett was born on February 9, 1926, in
Adairsville, Georgia. As a child, she decided to learn the hand alphabet that is used by deaf people because she was curious. She attended
Wesleyan College in
Macon, Georgia, earning a B.A in 1947 and
M.F.A. in 1948. After graduating, she acted in community theater and had an advertising job in Atlanta, Georgia. In 1951 she married M. O. Thornburg, an employee of Atlanta's WAGA radio station. ==Career==