Barbara Ann Otte

Barbara was born in 1927 in Moorehead, Minnesota. She was the third child of Rollin Oscar Smith and Mary Fox Smith, and the younger sibling of Mary Louise and Rollin, Jr. “Bud”. In 1929, the family moved to Alliance, Nebraska, where sisters Jannette and Kathleen were born. In 1940, the family relocated to Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Barbara earned her RN from the University of Minnesota in 1948. Over the years of her nursing career, she worked in Minneapolis; Houston, Texas; Kansas City, Missouri; and Lawrence, Kansas. In the mid fifties, she moved to Boston, Massachusetts, for about 6 months and volunteered her nursing services to assist with the devastating polio epidemic.

In August 1961 she married Dr. Richard Brand Otte (“Dick”), and they moved to Alexandria, Virginia. There she raised two sons, Rick and Bob. She was quick to provide love and support for all and lovingly welcomed in Dick’s daughter Raelea with open arms as a core member of the family and a loving sister to Rick and Bob.

Barbara’s life was filled with happy holiday gatherings and many summers of family vacations spent camping, fishing and sightseeing all across the United States and Canada. She was a veracious reader and a gourmet cook, and she enjoyed driving sports cars. During her life Barbara owned a Renault and an MGB, but she was likely most well known for driving that battleship of a car--the grey1966 Pontiac Grand Prix.

The doors were always open at the Otte household. With the comfort of her loving hospitality, Barbara welcomed anyone to visit, stay over, or join the family for a holiday occasion. Her home on North Ashton Street became a meeting place for the neighborhood kids. Whether it was street football or basement jam sessions, all were welcome and felt at home at the Otte’s house.

Barbara worked as the head of nurses for the City of Alexandria Public Schools. During her work as a school nurse, Barbara is credited with creating a controversial teen pregnancy program for young girls attending Alexandria City public schools. She designed this program to create a healthy and safe environment where girls could access education, guidance, support, and public resources necessary to ensure a healthy pregnancy and a successful child delivery.

Her retirement was spent with husband Dick. Together they spent their time gardening, cooking, traveling, and reading. She was a grandmother to 2 grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren.

There are no words to express the sorrow of our loss or to fill the void that is left when someone like Mom is gone. I will end these words as I ended all of my conversations with Mom,

Bye, Mom. I love you…