Obituaries

Verona-

Barbara Jean Barker Hill, 69, of Verona, Wisconsin, passed away unexpectedly on Friday, August 10th, 2018. She is survived by her beloved husband, Duane, her three children, Ryan (Joanne), Amy (Joe), and Eric (Lulu), her sisters Shirley and Susan (Paul), and her grandchildren, Zoe, 6, and Jackson, 5 – all of whom couldn’t get enough of her, and didn’t.

Jean, as she was known to most, was a nurse, a daughter, a sister, a mother, a wife, a grandmother, a friend, an activist, and superlative in each. But really, she was a lover: of family, first and always; of nature and its inhabitants; of humanity and its goodness; of honesty; of justice.

Her favorite places on earth were Scotland, where she first fell in love with Duane; Maine, where she spent her summers in college; and wherever her children and grandchildren were.

Living for others was Jean’s raison d’etre (she also spoke French, sort of, Spanish, a little, and English, constantly). She filled her life with service, from coordinating hospice volunteers and caring for the bereaved, to volunteering at the local food pantry, to running for school board (and winning), to working the polls in support of democracy.

Her exuberance for life knew no bounds, and she pursued with vigor any opportunity to open her eyes even wider to all things new to her: cultures, books, food, people, places, experiences. She always claimed she’d grow old and wear her hair purple one day. She did the dye job, but nobody would ever describe her as old.

Jean loved flowers, but doesn’t have much use for them now. What she really wanted is for the arc of history to bend toward justice, and had been despairing it was bending the wrong way of late. So in lieu of flowers, you can honor her memory with a donation to the Democratic Party of Wisconsin (www.wisdems.org), or to the Badger Prairie Needs Network (www.bpnn.org/donate), where she often volunteered.

A memorial service will be held at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 15th, 2018 at RYAN FUNERAL HOME - VERONA CHAPEL, 220 S. Enterprise Dr., Verona. Visitation will be held from 1 p.m. until the time of service on Wednesday at the funeral home.

To view and sign this guestbook, please visit: www.ryanfuneralservice.com.