When a woman lives to be 97, a lot of history stacks up stacks and stacks of living comprised of her love of family, work, and community service.


Although she was born in Lyndon, Kansas, May 1917, Faye Walker Barber lived in Kiowa County for most of her life. In 1922, her family moved permanently to the Brandon/Chivington area. They lived on a farm with several animals, including chickens and pigs. One of the recent stories she told was of her and her brothers and sisters, playing with piglets as if they were puppies cuddling them and rubbing their tummies until the little piglets went to sleep in their arms. As the oldest girl, she was her mothers house helper, and spent many a day cooking for the family and sometimes farm hands and also helped care for her younger siblings. Her youngest brother, John, always referred to Faye as his second mother.



When she was 14, Faye met the love of her life, Ed Barber and they were married December 14, 1935. Then, along came the childrenCharles in 1938, Joyce in 1942, and Shirley in 1945. Faye and Ed endured the depression and the dust bowl, and made the most of what they had, as did most of the folks of that era.


Their kids were the center of the family, with conversations and laughter at the supper table. Together they supported the kids activities and made Christmas a very special time, including hosting many extended family dinners. When the first grandchildren came along, they traveled to Boulder to visit their grandsons. Later, they were blessed with another grandson and finally a granddaughter. They wore a hole in the road from Eads to Denver and Boulder for many years visiting them.



When her youngest started school in 1951, Faye went to work across the street from their house at the Assessors office in Eads. She could look out her window to be sure the kids came right home from school, and if they didn't . . . well you can imagine what happened. She worked at the court house for almost 21 years, 17 at the Assessors Office, and then she moved across the hall to the County Clerks Office. In the 70s Faye began distributing Rawleigh, Stanley and Tri-Chem products, for which she often kept up to seven detailed ledgers. Over the years education was important to her, so she took classes in Lamar and Las Animas to improve her business skills.



She continued her education by completing 80 hours of nurses aid training while working at the Weisbrod Nursing Home. She kept up her nurses aid certification through 1991. This training would prove to be invaluable when her husband required nursing home care due to his ailing health. Rather than care for Ed part time at the facility, she brought him home in July and cared for him there until he passed in September of 1982.


Faye and Ed joined the Methodist Church together prior to the merge with the EUB Church. Even then, Faye read daily devotions, and in Eds last months she read them to him. That was the beginning of her reading through the Bible each year. An active member of the church, Faye prepared the communion service for over 35 years until 2002, and always scalloped potatoes for funeral dinners -- sometimes requiring the peeling of 80 pounds of potatoes until her early 90s She enjoyed membership in the United Methodist Women Group for over 50 years and was an officer when it disbanded in 2010.


And she traveled first the family trip to California to visit Eds familythen a tour with her mother through the westerns states by bus. In the 80s she and Shirley visited Scotland and Washington, D.C. She and Joyce took several trips to various states for genealogy research. Their last trip together was to visit Fayes grandson, Kent, in Idaho to see her great granddaughter Sarah and new baby great granddaughter Olivia. Fortunately, granddaughter Julie lived close to Denver so she could visit her great granddaughters, Emelia and Chloe, several times a year. After Faye quit driving out of town, she and her son Chuck shared a lot of miles together.


Faye enjoyed cooking and baking her entire life and she was good at it. Everyone who has eaten a piece of Faye Barber's rhubarb pie won't soon forget it. LaVerne Eder tells the story of bidding on one of those pies but losing the bid at $40.00. Everyone looked forward to her pies at family reunions and, as usual, she made an extra coconut pie for her younger brother John. She brought 12 pies to her last reunion in 2013.



Almost everyone she knew received at least one, if not dozens, of her famous quick breads. And then there were thousands of jars of canned beets, fruit, jellies, and jams that came out of Faye's kitchen to share. She was still canning and baking at 96 years of age.


Quilting was also a favorite pastime that she shared with her mother, Ora Brooks, piecing and hand quilting too many to mention. Faye then moved on to hand tied quilts that numerous family members and friends received, not to mention the many Afghans she made for friends and family, as well as for the Linus Project, which provided blankets for babies in need.


Over the years, Faye was an active member of many organizations. She served on the Area on Aging Task Force and Sage boards, and held offices for The Daughters of the American Revolution Fort William Bent Chapter, and when the Red Hatters formed in Eads she joined up. Reading was also part of her life including books and periodicals. Even to the end she still read National Geographic, Readers Digest, Guideposts, the Mayo Clinic Health Letter and, of course, her Bible.


Faye especially enjoyed the comradery at the Eads Senior Centerthe many dinners, playing cards and visiting. Happy to pitch in where needed, she held 9 offices at various times. Adept at fundraising, in the summer of 2013 she made over 40 hand tied quilts to sell at the Ride the Plaines booth, resulting in a tidy sum for the center. Faye's final contribution was over $800 from her yard sale in October.




Faye received numerous awards over the years. She walked for better health, not just because she was born a Walker. She was proud to receive the Certificate of Excellence for completion of 1,474,586 steps in the Colorado on the Move Program. She accomplished this in 2004 at the age of 87 on two very arthritic knees.



But she was most surprised and thrilled to be named Kiowa Countys 2003 Citizen of the Year. A partial quote from the January 9, 2004 Kiowa County Press read: "Faye was chosen, in part, due to her tireless effort on behalf of others. Faye has been active in many charitable organizations and has dedicated her life for the betterment of Kiowa County and Kiowa County Residents."


A life well lived . . . a life of love for family and friends and community.


I am sure she is being greeted in Heaven with the words we all hope to hear when we arrive home: Well done, good and faithful servant.


Faye Barber was born May 16, 1917 and left this world at the Weisbrod Extended Care facility on December 5, 2014. She is preceded in death by her husband, F. Edward Barber; brothers, Charles Walker and John Walker; sister, Evelyn Roberts; and parents, Peter A. Walker and Ora Walker Brooks.


Faye is survived by her son, Charles E. Barber of Longmont, CO; daughters, Joyce Wheeler and Shirley Barber (Joe) Byrne both of Centennial, CO; sister, Ilene (LaVerne) Eder; sister-in-law, Esther Walker; brother-in-law, Jerry Roberts; brother-in-law, Cricket (Mildred) Barber; four grandchildren, and four great grandchildren, as well as many nieces and nephews.


Celebration of Life services were held December 13, 2014, at the United Methodist Church in Eads, Colorado with Rev. Nancy Peacock officiating. Charlotte Woelk was the pianist and Betty Crow was the organist for the service with Mary Eikner and Sylvia Weeks singing Just A Closer Walk With Thee, What A Day That Will Be and Going Home. Serving as casketbearers were: Jason Schierkolk, Clifford Walker, Robert Nestor, Nick Eder, Larry Gifford, Cardon Berry and D.L. Weeks. All of Fayes dear friends were the honorary casketbearers. Final committal services were held at the Eads Cemetery with Kathy Nutt of the Daughters of the American Revolution performing a committal service. Memorial contributions should be made to the Eads United Methodist Church - Box 217; Eads, CO 81036.


Friends and family can register online condolences and sign the guest book at www.brownfuneraldirectors.com. Visitation and funeral services were entrusted to the care of the Brown Funeral Home in Eads.