Barbara Diane Morris

Barbara Diane Morris was reunited in Heaven with her mother and father on the morning of June 14th, 2020. Barbara was born July 11th, 1945 in Evansville, Indiana to Harold and Margaret (Lundeen) Hunt. At the age of four months old her family moved to Poplar, Montana where her mother was born and raised. She graduated from Poplar High School in 1963 and then attended Eastern Montana College in Billings for two years. She then transferred to Washington State University (Go Cougs!) and graduated with a degree in Elementary Education in 1967.

After teaching five years in Germany and Washington, Barbara began her new full time and “most important job” (her words) as a mother to Kristin Wood in 1972 and Brett Calhoun in 1975. Once her children were older, she decided to extend her education and pursue a degree as a registered nurse. She graduated from Yakima Valley College as an R.N. in 1982.

Barbara worked one year as a clinical nurse and then combined her passions by becoming a school nurse in the Naches Valley School District. After three years, she missed the close contact with students and became a teacher, within the same school district, which she absolutely loved until retiring in 2002. Even when the disease started to take her memory, Barbara always smiled when she talked about her “students” and asked when the kids were coming to see her. She left a lasting impression on many students that she taught, and she felt equally blessed to have them in her classroom.

In 1998 she married her “Noah,” Eugene “Gene” Morris, and they shared many interests in walking, traveling, reading, and laughing. Gene promised her that he would be there until the end, and he stuck to his promise of being there through “thick and thin” and “sickness and health.”

In 2006 she welcomed her granddaughter, Ireland Victoria, and thought her world was complete. She and Gene quickly relocated from East Wenatchee back to Yakima, to be closer to family. Barb had a special relationship with Ireland and Ireland loved to spend time with her “Mimi.” In 2016, Barbara was blessed with her last grandchild, Tate James. We know she will always be Ireland’s and Tate’s guardian angel throughout their lifetime.

She was preceded in death by her mother and father, Helen Lane (her very special aunt), her brother William Hunt, her grandparents, and aunts and uncles. Left to cherish her loving memories is her husband, Gene Morris of Yakima, her daughter Kristin (Loren, Kailee, Vance & Ireland (Davie) Wood of Selah, her son Brett (Carisa, Tucker (Austin) & Tate) Calhoun of Naches, her step-daughter Tami Morris of Mesa, AZ, her step-son Eugene Jr. (Kaye) Morris of Vancouver, WA, and her brother John Hunt of Plentywood, Montana. Along with many cousins, family and friends that she loved so dearly.

In lieu of flowers, please contribute donations to Alzheimer’s and Dementia research (www.alz.org). Burial will be with immediate family and a Celebration of Life will be scheduled at a later date. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.keithandkeith.com.

“If there ever comes a day when we can’t be together, keep me in your heart, I’ll stay there forever.”

-A.A. Milne