Barbara Gartner Parker

Barbara Gartner Parker of Medford, MA, formerly of Cranbury, NJ, died peacefully after a long illness on October 25. Born Barbara Anne Gartner on May 11, 1934 in Trenton, NJ, Barbara was the eldest child of Mary Blackwell and John Winter Gartner. Barbara, along with her three siblings Wendy, John Jr. and Sandy, grew up in Lawrenceville, NJ, where their father was a French and Spanish teacher and legendary basketball coach at the Lawrenceville School.

Barbara was especially close to her father, inheriting his love of sports, books and gardening.
She played field hockey and basketball at Miss Fine's School in Princeton. As a child and young mother she often visited her beloved grandmother, Mutzy, at her apartment on East 38th Street in New York City.

At Miss Fine's she met her dear friend Marcia, and the two were inseparable, forming a lasting friendship. While still a junior, Barbara met Riggs Parker, then an undergraduate at Princeton. Two years later they married. Soon there were five children: Jesse, the eldest, followed by Holly, then Robin while Riggs was in the army and then a law student in Charlottesville. Carrie and David arrived after the family had settled in the Philadelphia suburbs.

The couple was ahead of their time. In the early 1960s the family moved to the racially diverse Mt. Airy neighborhood of Germantown and opted to send the children to Quaker schools to experience a more diverse, more integrated educational experience. The marriage, however, proved a difficult union and ended in divorce after 15 years.

In the early 1970s, Barbara moved to Cranbury, NJ, where she lived for more than 25 years until moving north to be closer to some of her children. In Cranbury, Barbara tended faithfully to her garden, growing peas, tomatoes, squash, zucchini and lettuce, as well as strawberries, marigolds, zinnias and bachelor's buttons.

Children brought much happiness and comfort to Barbara. She was the proud and loving grandmother of two grandsons and 14 granddaughters, and more recently, five great grandchildren.

Barbara had a deep appreciation for arts and culture. She loved watching sports—as much for sport as for the personalities—especially tennis, basketball and baseball. She may have been the only Mets and Knicks fan turned Red Sox, Celtics, and Patriots loyalist.

Barbara was an extraordinary gift giver. She took pleasure in selecting the most personal of gifts—incredibly attuned to people's wishes, interests, and needs. She almost never forgot a birthday, even to the end. And, at Christmas, her favorite holiday, she went all out.

Barbara was generous and determined. She had a curious mind and she was interested in the world. Though at times she had a heavy heart, she wanted nothing more than to love and be loved.

She leaves her cherished children: Jesse Parker of China, Holly Parker of MA, Robin and David Meirs of NJ, Caroline Parker and Enrique Tercero of MA and David and Rebecca Parker of MA. She is also survived by her siblings, Wendy and Barry Rowland of MA, John and Kay Gartner of NJ and Sandra Gartner of WY. In addition, she leaves her 16 adored grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren. Funeral is through Eaton Funeral Home, Needham, MA. Memorial Service at the First Parish Unitarian Church, 23 Dedham Ave., on Saturday, October 29th at 10 am, reception immediately following. Burial on Monday, October 31 at 12 noon at Woodlawn Cemetery, Webster Ave. and East 233rd St., Bronx, NY. Donations in her honor can be made to Heifer International at www.heifer.org

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