Linda L. Barber's Obituary
Linda (Phelps) Barber, 88, was at home on June 5, 2026, when she passed from this earth to eternity.
For 6 years she mourned and missed her beloved Jim. They are together now, she singing in her beautiful soprano voice from her college days, and he in his deep base, praising the Lord in Heaven. She spoke frequently about the Lord’s plan for her life and loved to look back over the years to look for reminders of His loving care for her and her family.
Jim and Linda were married in 1959, a Tucson cowboy and a 4th generation California girl. They met through interstate Methodist college meetings and married right after she graduated from Long Beach State college with teaching and music degrees. She taught 6th grade while he finished at the U of A and Stanford "on the sweat of his frau". She taught him to love Handel's Messiah and poodles, and he taught her to love rodeo and the desert. She loved to tell how they lived at 22 addresses in the first 12 years of marriage, in Germany with the Army, in California and Washington, Virginia, Ft. Huachuca, Texas, until eventually making their way back to Tucson for good in 1971.
She and Jim raised two daughters, Jill (Bryan) Simmons and Janet (Chris) Gurton. Their lives were full of love and togetherness, learning and activities done as a family. They took family vacations driving all over the country, seeing everything they could see on the way. The girls were in Rainbow Girls and Linda was on the board and attended meetings every other week for over a decade. She and Jim supported Janet in her basketball, volleyball and softball activities, and Jill in her academic and student council activities. She was cookie chairman for their Girl Scout troop. She delivered mobile meals with her friend Helen McKenzie and when they discovered Mrs. Mendez who lived in a dirt floored shack with no plumbing, they enlisted the husbands and all the kids to fix up her place. She volunteered in the mammo-mobile, which was an early effort to teach the importance of mammograms. She frequently attended Flowing Wells school board meetings and ran once….she didn’t win, but she helped Jim win at the next election. She always welcomed the girls’ friends into their home. And she registered everyone she could to vote on their 18th birthday!
She could toll paint, make turquoise and silver jewelry, and shoot strait. She made her girls clothes and taught them to sew, encouraging Jill in her 35 years as a professional seamstress, and watching the skill get passed on to her granddaughters. She taught herself how to control her diabetes. Music was an essential part of every day for Linda. She was the author of the text for the Barbarama Christmas letter for 68 years, and the editor of everything Jim ever wrote. She had a good sense of humor, loving to laugh at Mad Magazine and Erma Bombeck.
Her granddaughters Beth (Alex) Banales and Sami Gurton were precious rays of light in her life. She and Jim were always excited to spend time with them, serving with them at Pusch Ridge Christian Academy service days at Gospel Rescue Mission, giving talks at PRCA and passing out Constitutions, taking them to swimming lessons, taking Sami to pick up a new puppy, anything they needed! She shared her favorite movie musicals with the girls and encouraged their love of music by singing “Happy Talk” from South Pacific and “You are my Sunshine” with them. She always reminded them how much she loved them when they left by saying “Don’t Forget!” The final crown for Linda was the joy of seeing her3 great grandsons, Harvey, Wendell and Oswald, run to her and ask her to read them books.
Linda was a loving sister who enjoyed spending time reminiscing with her younger sister Penny Sue (Phelps) Heath over a meal, reminiscing about memories of growing up in southern California with their parents Ed and Helen Phelps, telling her about things she remembered better because she was 9 years older, and talking politics and news and family. She also loved her sons in law, Bryan and Chris, as if they were her own flesh and blood.
Most remember Linda as a proud patriotic American, who loved to wear red, white and blue and collect flags and bald eagles. Here are only a few of the many details about that part of her life. In 1972 she was elected neighborhood Republican Precinct committeeman and stayed one continuously for 54 years. In 1975, the family joined in their first political campaign for neighbor and friend Bob Steinebach. In 1977, she and Jim took Jill and Janet to a series of classes on the US Constitution and the family was immersed in conservative politics from then on. The little house in Flowing Wells even contained the first VCR in the neighborhood, because she hosted Constitution classes on tape at home. The whole family circulated petitions, handed out doorknob hangers, participated in parades. She even tried to organize a 4th of July Parade in Tucson! After the bicycle tires melted and the antique cars overheated, it was decided that perhaps it wasn't meant to be!
All her life she continued using her teaching skills by training Precinct committeemen on a state wide level. She developed talks on George Washington which she delivered at schools and various club meetings. She served with Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge, raising money for scholarships to send students to Valley Forge for educational purposes. She donated pictures of George Washington at Prayer to area schools. She mentored younger folks who were interested in politics and many called her “mom” over the years. Her email address is GOPMOM!
Linda wore many hats over the years, but all had a few things in common. She believed in grass roots service to her country and to others. She was kind and considerate. She had strong ideas and deep principles, but she never tried to make anyone feel like a lesser person because they disagreed with her. During her time working in Pima County and Arizona Republican politics, she was known as a lady, who could compromise about small things in order to get bigger things accomplished. People liked her and could get along with her. She was frequently interviewed for news pieces because she always had something calm, wise and considerate to say. Civility, wisdom, loyal friendship were some of her best qualities. She was a devoted and amazing volunteer in many areas and taught volunteerism as a character trait to her girls.
Among her many proud accomplishments were being elected twice to the Electoral College, becoming the first ever woman chairman of the Pima County Republican Committee, going as delegate to Republican National convention in 1988, jobs as manager of Governor Evan Mecham’s Tucson office and Senator Jon Kyle’s Tucson campaign. She was Tucson chairman of the 200th Birthday of the Constitution, and most recently, President of the Pima County Republican Club on Tuesdays at the Kettle. She looked forward to that day every week and always took her gavel, which was made for her by Jim and Sami. She enjoyed meeting many famous people over the years because of her activities. Actually, she just enjoyed people. If you were lucky enough to have known her, you have heard some of these stories, and know what a great lady she was. Please celebrate The United States of America’s 250th birthday this year with as much excitement as she had for the event and think of Linda when you do.
In lieu of flowers please make a donation in Linda's name to Gospel Rescue Mission or GAP Ministries, or to any patriotic group you like.
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