Mrs. Barbara Ann (Henson) Lunsford, age 85, of Houston, Texas passed away peacefully on Wednesday morning, December 23, 2020. She was born on March 3, 1935 in Beaumont, Texas, a daughter of Aqullar Marsh and Lillie (Cook) Henson and sister to sixteen siblings.
Barbara Lunsford had "a heart of gold" and sacrificed to ensure her family’s happiness. Although born poor with hand-me-down clothes and make-shift toys, her siblings were rich in the love that “Barbie” gave after she quit school to help raise them until she married at age 16. She started a family of her own and moved to the home she lived in since 1959 on East Rittenhouse Street in Houston.
She took pride in her home, scrubbing the kitchen until it was sparkling and maintaining her rose bushes, even in the hot Texas heat. Love overflowed, and the family enjoyed large dinners she worked tirelessly to prepare and gathered on Christmas Day in a living room full of presents she generously saved for all year.
Barbara was independent, fearless, and fun. Whether she was dancing to the jukebox in her kitchen or at The Hop until nearly 80-years-old, humming as she rocked her grandkids to sleep, or drinking a cup of fresh coffee while she talked on the phone to loved ones, she lived life to the fullest.
Barbara was preceded in death by her husband of nearly 33 years, George R. Lunsford, and two sons, Robin Olin and Steven Olin, and survived by her three daughters, Sheila Witt, Kelly and husband Bruce Elliott, and Shelly Cory. She was MeMaw to eleven grandchildren: Stacey, Jennifer, Kristal, Robin (Robbie), Eighmy, Natalie, Ashley, Brianna, Preston, Logan, and Brooklin, and ten great-grandchildren: Rayleigh, Alayna, Taylor, Madison, Kennedy, Lillie, Preasley, Robin III, Hudson, and Alina.
She will be missed by many, but we know she is already enjoying heaven and her dance floor in the clouds.
Visitation for family and friends will be held on Monday, December 28, 2020 from 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm at Brookside Funeral Home, 13747 Eastex Freeway, Houston, Texas 77039. A Celebration of Life will occur on Tuesday, December 29, 2020 at 2:00 pm in the Grand Chapel at Brookside Funeral Home with Dr. Michael Ray officiating, followed by a burial at Brookside Memorial Park.
