Barbara Ann McGauvran's Obituary
Barbara Ann McGauvran, age 79, passed away peacefully Sunday, September 22, 2013, in the home of her daughter and surrounded by her loving family.
Barbara was born on July 15, 1934 in Clinton, Iowa to Gerhardt and Marion Lange. She was a 1951 graduate of Clinton’s Lyons High School. After graduating, Barbara took a job working in eastern Iowa as an operator and supervisor for the Northwestern Bell Telephone Company. While working in Burlington, Iowa, she met a young army officer and chemical engineer, Robert Baker. They were married in 1955 and spent their first year together in Tucson, Arizona at the Fort Huachuca Army Base. After Robert’s discharge from the military, they returned to Clinton, Iowa for a few years before relocating to Waco, Texas where Barbara raised their two daughters. While in Waco, Barbara worked in the billing department of the Christian recording and publishing company, Word Incorporated. In the mid-1970’s, the family relocated to the Dallas, Texas area. As a single woman, in the 1980’s and 90’s, Barbara worked for Central and Southwest Services. During that time, she obtained her college degree from Dallas Baptist University, graduating summa cum laude with a business and finance degree; an amazing feat at 60 years of age. She retired from Central and Southwest Services in 1997, went back to school to learn medical billing, and worked part-time for Dr.’s Tullar and King until her full retirement in 2005. While visiting Iowa in 2008, Barbara was reacquainted with her high school sweetheart, Ron McGauvran, and they were married in April, 2011. She and Ron spent two happy and active years together in Clinton, Iowa.
Barbara is remembered for her feisty, can-do attitude, adventurous spirit, and as someone who never wasted a minute of life. She was a wonderful wife and mother. The center of Barbara’s life was her strong faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. She was a faithful member of Trinity Church in Cedar Hill, Texas and is currently a member of St. John Lutheran Church in Clinton, Iowa.
Barbara is preceded in death by her parents, Gerhardt and Marion Lange, her brother Larry Lange, and her sister, Wanda Schneider. She is survived by her husband, Ronald McGauvran of Clinton, Iowa; her daughters, Lynn Cummings and husband, Edward, of Duncanville, Texas, and Deborah Doyal and husband, Jessie, of Dallas, Texas; her brother, Paul Lange and wife, Coralie, of Bellevue, Iowa; and, her beloved dog, Prissy.
A private burial service will be at 1:00pm, Saturday, October 5, 2013, at Fulton Township Cemetery Fulton, Illinois, officiated by Reverend Dan Pool of St. John Lutheran Church. The Clinton Chapel Snell-Zornig Funeral Homes & Crematory is assisting the family. Online condolences may be expressed by visiting her obituary at www.snellzornig.com The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorials be sent to Organ and Music Fund, St. John Lutheran Church, 422 Main Avenue, Clinton, Iowa 52732.
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