Barbara J. and Walter "Ray" Dean

Barbara Jane Snow, the only child of Maude (Wallis) and Gilbert Snow, was born August 30, 1926 in Billings, Montana. She attended McKinley Grade School, was a student of ballet and attended the Methodist Church. At the age of 14, Barbara’s mother died and her father, unable to cope with his loss, left Billings to work in a remote mountain area as caretaker of an asbestos mine. He left Barbara in the care of her Aunt Lottie (Maude’s sister) and Uncle Jim Thorpen, who raised her as their own. Barbara saw her father only once more when they took supplies to the mine for him. He soon left the mine and no one heard from him again until shortly before his death in Chicago, Illinois, in 1965.

Barbara attended Billings High School through her sophomore year. However, during World War II Uncle Jim’s fleet of trucks were conscripted so the family moved to Idaho where Uncle Jim helped build Farragut Naval Base, and then on to Tillamook, Oregon where Jim’s trucks helped build the nearby Blimp Base. The family returned to their home in Billings so that Barbara could finish high school and graduate with her class of 1944. The following year Jim sold their home and his trucks and the three then traveled for six months. Jim visited his sisters in Eugene and went into a joint business venture with his brother-in-law by purchasing a pumice block plant. Jim built a lovely home of pumice block but the business failed. Barbara went to work for Bell Telephone Company in Eugene.

Barbara Snow met Walter Raymond (Ray) Dean in Eugene, Oregon, and they married November 7, 1947. Barbara continued to work at Bell Telephone while Ray took classes at the University of Oregon. By the time Ray graduated in 1953 with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Business, they had two children; Raymond Charles (Chuck) born in 1948 and Sandra Jane born in 1949. While Ray worked for National Cash Register, they had a second son, David, born in 1954. After transferring to Salem, Oregon, their third son, Robert Kevin (Kevin), was born in 1957.

Through the years the family lived in Stockton, California; Longview, Washington; Detroit, Michigan; and Denver, Colorado, while following Ray’s rise within the US Rubber Company.

Wanting a more stable family life, Barbara and Ray returned to Oregon in 1969. The family settled in Lake Oswego where they bought their new home deciding not move again. Barbara entered the workforce again and worked as an Area Representative for two different hosiery companies. She enjoyed working with the buyers of Lipman Wolfe and Meier and Frank department stores, and found the work stimulating, but resigned in 1978 when the company was bought out. Barbara later took a job as a cosmetician with a local drug store.

Family was always the priority for Barbara. She was very proud of her children and felt a deep satisfaction in each of their accomplishments. Barbara found great happiness being the grandparent to six children – Taryn and Stephanie Dean, Kristin and Jonathan Dean, and Joshua and Sabrina Tomeoni. During the last few years she was blessed with the addition of four great-grandchildren.

Barbara had a deep interest in genealogy and worked on the family histories of all four branches of their ancestors. Her research was extensive and she and Ray logged almost 10,000 miles in their camper researching the history through the states of Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, North and South Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, Wisconsin and Washington. They visited towns and areas where their grandparents had been born or lived. They found information at historical museums, court houses, libraries, and from relatives they had never seen before. They also attended family reunions gathering more data and anecdotal histories of the different families. In the year 2000 she published an extensive family history of the Thorpens.

In 1995, Ray suffered injuries to his shoulder, back and knee. Barbara nursed Ray through the recuperation period and later through recovery from surgeries. With her children’s assistance, she continued to be Ray’s devoted primary caregiver.

Barbara is survived by her husband Ray; children Chuck, Sandra, David, and Kevin; six grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. Her legacy of kindness, generosity, and love is unending; she lives forever in our hearts. Thank you, mother.

Arrangements under the direction of Young's Funeral Home, Tigard, OR.