She was born July 26, 1927 in Nashville, and was preceded in death by her parents, Frank E. and Mary Catherine (Bauerlein) Stephens; a son, “Baby” Sullivan, and sisters, Mary Catherine Stephens and Virginia S. Alford, all of Nashville. She is survived by her friend and former husband, James W. Sullivan; her brother, John B. Stephens, Sr. (Edna Earle) of Nashville; sister, Gretchen Stephens of West Lafayette, IN; nephews, John B. Stephens, Jr. (Dawnne) of Hendersonville, TN, Rev. Timothy J. Stephens, S.J. of Baltimore, MD; niece, Mary Rita Boyd (John) of Mt. Juliet, TN; great-nephews, John T. Stephens (Gabrielle) of Torrance, CA, Kenneth P. Stephens of Hendersonville, TN; great-nieces, Katherine B. Boyd and Christina M. Boyd of Mt. Juliet, TN; and great-great niece, Natalie Marie Stephens of Torrance, CA.
Barbara attended St. Cecilia Academy. She married James W. Sullivan of Fayetteville, TN in 1952, residing in Nashville, Tullahoma, TN and later Melbourne, FL. While in Florida, she served as Beautification Coordinator for the City of Melbourne and was active in the Republican Party. Returning to Nashville in the 1990s to care for her aunts and uncle, Barbara joined Master Gardeners of Davidson County achieving lifetime Master Gardener status in 2004 and receiving numerous ACE awards over twenty years. For sixteen years she served as chairperson for the DCMG project, Grassmere Historic Gardens at the Nashville Zoo, which was recognized as the No. 1 Demonstration Garden in the UT Extension Search for Excellence 2010 and in the International Master Gardener Search for Excellence in 2011. Barbara was especially honored to be nominated for a Mary Catherine Strobel Volunteers of the Year Award in 2006.
Visitation will be held from four to seven o’clock in the evening on Friday, December 6th, 2013 at Woodlawn Roesch-Patton Funeral Home. A graveside service for the family will be held after Christmas. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to Grassmere Historic Gardens at the Nashville Zoo (c/o Tori Mason, Croft House/Grassmere Historic Farm, 3777 Nolensville Pike, Nashville, TN 37211).
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