Barbara Miller Wright passed away on Tuesday, November 7, 2023 with her husband of 57 years, Mike, by her side. Barb and Mike retired to Palm Coast nine years ago and immediately immersed themselves in the community. Barb enjoyed time with her many friends whether it was on the tennis court, golf course, in book club, Mahjong or the many other groups in which she participated. She loved to host parties and gatherings and it was not unusual for her to host three or four events a week! From “Drinks in the Driveway” during COVID; to cookie decorating around the holidays; to “Hurricane the Drink” parties after a pesky hurricane blew through; to Friday night Ted Lasso viewing parties (complete with “biscuits” in pink boxes;, there was no occasion too small for Barb to host a gathering! Barb’s happiest times were with her friends and family.
Barb and Mike were high school sweethearts in Lima, OH and were married August 27, 1966. After graduating from Lima Senior High School, she attended Lima Memorial Hospital School of Nursing and was an RN. She and Mike moved to Washington DC right after they were married and she began her nursing career at Cafritz Hospital in Washington (now United Medical Center). She worked as a nurse for a number of years before taking time off to be a full time mom to her daughter, Kristin.
After a few years in DC, they moved out to the suburbs and ultimately into their “dream home” on Miracle Lane in Falls Church. Barb had many friends in northern VA and was active in the Junior Women’s Club where she met lifelong friends. These friends and their husbands became the self proclaimed “Society of Eight” and are still friends today, although they have had to say goodbye to a few members.
In 1984 Mike’s job took them to Heidelberg, Germany for four years. As was Barb’s nature she immediately became involved and was active in many groups, most of them centered around Kris’s high school endeavors. With Mike, she was an active member of the Heidelberg American High School Lions Booster Club; and the parent group of Club Beyond (Young Life for DODDS schools overseas); as well as many others. If she wasn’t on the sidelines watching Kris as a cheerleader, or while running track, she was chaperoning trips of high schoolers. Occasionally she would lead tour groups with her dear friend, Kay Taylor, to places around Europe and developed a love of traveling. While in Germany she also began working for the Federal Education Association (FEA), the state association of the National Education Association representing teachers teaching in Department of Defense schools around the world and on military bases in the US. Barb would go on to work for FEA until her retirement in 2013, and during those years advocate for the rights of thousands of our country’s teachers. She loved her colleagues, and she was passionate about her work.
After Kris graduated from high school in 1988 they moved back to Falls Church to the same house they left four years earlier. For the next four years Barb hosted Thanksgiving weekend for up to 30 of Kris’s “orphaned friends”, those “kids” who were in college but whose parents were still serving overseas and they could not get home for the Thanksgiving holiday. Barb took it all in stride with bodies in beds, on couches, and on the floor throughout the house; late night hot tub parties (kids, not Barb and Mike!); and the full fixings of turkey and all the sides for everyone who walked through the door. She was “mom” to dozens of kids and she treated them all like they were her own.
Barb loved to travel (even though she did NOT like to fly!) and she was fortunate both before and after retirement to enjoy many fabulous trips with Mike and friends and family. From river and canal cruises through Europe, transatlantic crossings, sailing through the Greek Isles, and many more, she and Mike experienced many incredible parts of the world. They certainly never let any grass grow under their feet, and were constantly planning their next adventure.
Barb is survived by her husband, Mike; her daughter, Kris South (Kevin) of Midlothian, VA; grandsons Michael South of New York NY and Ryan South at Auburn University; brother Gary Miller (Carol) of Orlando, FL; sisters-in-law Patricia Klitgaard of San Francisco, CA and Linda Fox-Miller of Lima, OH; nieces and nephew Holly Eichhorst (Matt) of Bristow, VA, Travis Miller of Fredericksburg, VA and Lindsay Cornelius (Gordon) of Dublin, OH; and dear cousins who were like sisters, Sandy Federer (Steve) of Columbus OH and Darcy Enginghe of Lima, OH.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Donald and Helen Miller and her brother, Greg Miller, all of Lima, OH.
A celebration of life will be held at Craig-Flagler Palms Funeral Home on Monday, November 13 at 11:00am with a reception immediately following. In lieu of flowers the family asks that you consider a donation to the Florida Cancer Specialists Foundation, an organization that provides financial assistance to qualified individuals undergoing cancer treatment. www.fcsf.org
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