This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: marysday Surnames: Barker, George, Ball, Classification: obituary Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/localities.northam.usa.states.oregon.counties.lincoln/6662/mb.ashx Message Board Post: The News Times, Newport, OR 97365 Thursday, Sep 19th, 2013 Jean L. Barker Jean L. Barker was born December 2, 1918 in Wichita, Kansas. She graduated from Wichita High School North in 1936 and earned a degree in Chemistry at Friends University 1940. She became a lab technician in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Moving on to a position at the hospital in Fort Riley, Kansas, she enjoyed meeting other professional women, including Myrtle Barker. Myrtle had a son named Henry Dennis Barker who was an army physician stationed in Panama during WWII. They met when he was home on leave, and were married in 1945 at the Presbyterian Church in Junction City, Kansas. They moved to Fort Monroe, Virginia where Henry was stationed next. Moving to Newport in March of 1946, they discovered a stunningly beautiful natural setting with a struggling town. Highway 101 was a narrow 2-lane road and people still had blackout curtains from the war. There was no hospital, just two houses yoked together for emergency care and obstetrics. They were befriended by young community leaders Kenneth and Frances Litchfield at church and quickly became fast friends. They decided to make Newport their home and Jean drafted the plans for their house built in 1951 on Penter Lane. Jean was active in many aspects of community life in Newport. She took classes through OSU Extension Service and Yaquina Art Association, and participated in the Genealogical Society. She led cub scout and girl scout troops, 4-H dog club and photography club, and taught Sunday School classes with a scholarly and creative approach. She and Frances Litchfield were the first women ordained as elders in the local Presbyterian Church in the 1960s. She served in the PTA and local school committee. She was elected to the Lincoln County School Board for five years where she presided calmly over contentious meetings arising from an inadequate tax base for education. She was active in PEO where she supported higher education for local girls. Jean also served on the Newport Planning Commission and the Pacific Communities Hospital budget committee. She was selected as Newport's "Community Legend" in 2004. She was adept with machines and gadgets such as black and white photo equipment, printing press, sewing machine and personal computer. She was skilled with water color painting, sketching and fabricating stained glass. She and Shirley George designed and built the four stained glass windows flanking the Presbyterian sanctuary doors. With Henry, she enjoyed traveling to see family members. They visited her sister Carolyn and family in Kansas and her brother Tom and family in New York State, and went to England with Tom and Janet to trace out family history. They traveled to Iran when son Paul was in the Peace Corps and then to Israel/Palestine with him. They traveled to Egypt and Ethiopia to see Paul and daughter-in-law Nora when he was working for CARE, to Oklahoma and Alaska to visit son George and his wife Nancy, and to Stuttgart, Germany to see their son John when he was studying there. In her final years, Jean gracefully let go of her beloved home to accept the caring environment offered at Oceanview Senior Living. There she received faithful support from daughter Sarah and son-in-law John Ball and often attended Trinity United Methodist Church in Toledo with them. She passed away peacefully on Labor Day, September 2, 2013. Henry preceded her in death in 1996. She is survived by her four children, eight grandchildren, and 3 greatgrandchildren. A celebration of life for Jean will be held Saturday, September 28th, 2013 at 11:00 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church in Newport. All are welcome. Donations in her memory may be given to the charity of your choice that reflects her values and life goals. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board.