Barbara Edwards

Barbara Edwards died Oct. 21. She was 87.

Barbara Jane Ward was a "New Year's baby” born Jan. 1, 1929, to Harold C. and Mary Louise Ward in Columbus, Ohio. In a newspaper article at 6 months it was noted that she was "growing a fine crop of teeth.”

Soon after she started college, her father, "Wardy” died, her mother became ill and Edwards got a job to support the family. She married Dr. David F. Edwards on Aug. 1, 1954. They had two children and had been married 62 years at the time of her death. They moved from Columbus, Ohio to Ann Arbor, Michigan, Winchester, Massachusetts, and Fort Collins, Colorado, where in 1974 she received a bachelor’s degree with high distinction from Colorado State University. She worked as a graphic artist/technical illustrator at Los Alamos National Laboratory and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. In 1981, she designed their family "dream" home in White Rock, New Mexico -- a passive solar half-underground berm house built by their son, Eric.

She loved drawing "house portraits" of buildings around Tracy, sculpting, painting, sewing and cooking. She also loved reading, traveling, and learning languages. She got to see much of this country and the world, and lived briefly in Brazil and Moscow, USSR. Most of all she loved her family and friends, meeting new people and smiling. People who knew her will always remember her incredible smile.

Throughout her life she was active in many groups, including American Association of University Women (AAUW), Toastmasters, Tracy Art League Tracy Woman's Club, Republican Women's Club, Phi Kappa Phi Art Honor Society, Macintosh Users Group, Tri Delta Sorority, the Girl Scouts and several book clubs. She also was  a docent at Haggin Museum in Stockton.

She is survived by her husband, David  Edwards; daughter, Meredith Edwards (Blake Starr) of Albuquerque, New Mexico; son, Eric Edwards (Sue) and grandchildren, Ian and Katie, of Tracy, California. She was preceded in death by her parents, Harold C. Ward and Mary Louise Ward, brother, Harold C. Ward II, and sister, Amy Kelly.

For more than 30 years, Edwards and her husband have been residents of Tracy and are long-time members of the Tracy Presbyterian Church, 101 Berverdro Ave, Tracy California 95376, where a memorial service was recently held. Memorial gifts in Edwards' name may be made to the church.