Dorothy Parkman Barr passed away peacefully at Madison Manor on Monday, June 15, 2015, at the age of 88 years. Her family and friends will forever remember Dorothy as a loving wife and mother who devoted her life to helping others.
Dorothy was born in Montgomery and spent her childhood in Montgomery, Gadsden and Anniston. She attended Vanderbilt University, where she earned a B.A. degree in Psychology and met her future husband of almost 60 years, the late Thomas Albert Barr, Jr. They married in 1949 and moved to Huntsville in 1956.
Over the course of her life, Dorothy raised five children and volunteered for numerous charitable organizations including the American Red Cross, Crisis Services Help Line, Meals-On-Wheels, Aid to Inmate Mothers, Huntsville Humane Society, Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts. She was a charter member of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, where she attended from 1963 until the mid 1980s before returning to the Church of the Nativity, Episcopal. She was active in church outreach programs such as Mission Guild, Church Women United, and Interfaith Mission Service. Additionally, she participated in prison outreach and literacy programs. She loved word puzzles, bird watching, gardening, and was a member of the Hillside Garden Club for many years.
Dorothy is survived by two sons, Russell Barr (Sandy) of Decatur, and Douglas Barr (Catherine) of Huntsville; three daughters, Peggy Barr of Riverside, CA, Kathy Barr of Madison, and Mary Barr of Los Alamos, NM; two sisters, Gertrude Morgan of Bethesda, MD and Rosemary Geier of Nashville, TN; nine grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, a loving sister-in-law and nieces and nephews.
Her husband, Thomas, preceded her in death. Her parents, The Rev. Edgar M. Parkman and Lula Turnmyer Parkman of Montgomery, AL, four siblings, and two grandchildren also predeceased her.
Friends are invited to attend a service to commit her ashes in the Memorial Garden at the Church of the Nativity, Episcopal on Saturday, July 11 at 10 am with The Rev. Rusty McCown officiating. A light brunch reception and visitation will follow.
Memorials may be made to the Church of the Nativity, Episcopal or to Crisis Services of North Alabama.
