Barbara Ann Reedy

Born in Sacramento in 1923 to loving parents Charles and Alice Reedy, Barbara was the youngest of four sisters (Jane, Elizabeth "Betty"' and Doris) who their father lovingly referred to as his "four queens". Barbara’s father was an executive with the I.Miller shoe company whose job took him across the country resulting in more than a dozen moves in her childhood . With her three sisters by her side, Barbara always had her best friends with her as they moved to Forest Hills, NY, Seattle, WA, and San Francisco, CA before permanently settling down in Southern California.

She valued her early education by the nuns attending catholic schools across the country. She graduated from Santa Ana High School and enjoyed a 31-year career with The Travelers insurance company in Los Angeles. Upon her retirement in 1978, she and her mother made their final move to Orange County living in Laguna Woods until her passing. She was a devoted daughter who lived with her parents and had a special relationship with her mother… caring for her until the time of her passing at age 90.

Barbara did not have children, so she placed a special emphasis on her three sisters and their families - the Bartelts, the Cains, and the Tomascos. Fifteen (15) Nieces and nephews all with stories of Auntie Bo or BoBo. The many family vacations at the beach in Ventura and Balboa Island. Visits to the Bay Area. Family holidays when Auntie Bo made homemade cranberry sauce or special desserts like her great cheesecake. Birthdays, weddings, births… every family occasion was important to her. Her priorities in life were family and her faith.

Barbara had a beautiful singing voice and a great talent for knitting. Children were welcomed into the world with one of Barbara’s hand knit afghans, most recently to a great-grand niece, Annie, who she held in her arms during her last month. Her final blankets will go to two more great-grand nieces or nephews when they are born this July.

She was an avid, daily reader. From the LA Times to biographies to People magazine, she was always on top of things. And, she had a love for horse racing. Many trips to the racetracks at Santa Anita and Del Mar plus wagers through nieces and nephews on the Triple Crown or Golden Gate Fields were always exciting, if not prosperous, times.

Barbara was fiercely independent for all of her 93 years and had an opinion on just about everything. Her entire life she had sisters who shared her history, if not always her point of view. Two years ago when she became the last surviving sister, the reality of the separation from all of her siblings was difficult for her. During her final years, age took its inevitable toll and she relied on her 15 nieces and nephews, and the stories of her 33 grand nieces/nephews and 18 great-grand nieces/nephews to keep her interested in the world outside her home. Through their visits, phone calls, photos, cards, and many boxes of See’s candy, her connection to her sisters lived on through their children. She was especially grateful for the care from her niece, Anita, whose assistance made it possible for her to stay in her home until the very end.