Marion Barbara Tyler White, formerly of Atlanta; Manhattan, KS; and Sewanee, TN passed away at her daughters’ home in Madison, GA, after living with vascular dementia for a number of years. Barbara was preceded in death by her husband of 45 years, E. Chappell White; parents, William Jules and Marion Ebener Tyler; sister, Flora Patricia Tyler; and beloved in-laws, Goodrich C. and Helen Chappell White. She is survived by her daughters, Patricia Dean White and Victoria Helen White, of Madison; son Tyler Goodrich White (Laura) of Lincoln, NE; and grandchildren Caroline Barbara White and Nicholas Garrick Chappell White, both of Lincoln.
Barbara was born and raised in Rio de Janiero, Brazil. She and her parents dearly loved Brazil, and Barbara was fluent in Portuguese. Inside this American lady beat the heart of a carioca, and all her life she carried the love of music, the sea, and deep ironic humor in the face of adversity that is so characteristic of her first hometown. She graduated from Bryn Mawr College in 1956 with a Bachelor of Arts in Archaeology, where she also completed a year of graduate study before working at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In 1959, she married and moved to Atlanta, where her husband was a music professor at Emory University and later also music critic for the Atlanta Journal.
In 1974, Barbara moved with her family to Manhattan, KS, when Chappell accepted an appointment at the Director of Graduate Music Studies at Kansas State University. She was very active in the Domestic Science Club through K-State, and for a time taught Portuguese at K-State. In 1992, she and Chappell retired to Sewanee, TN, on the mountain where the White family had vacationed since the 1920’s. There they became very active in the music and cultural scene at the University of the South and with Otey Memorial Parish Church in Sewanee. She also served devotedly with several community service organizations, including the Sewanee Women’s Club and the Hospitality Shop of the Emerald Hodgson Hospital.
In 2016, after her diagnosis of vascular dementia, Barbara moved to Georgia to live with her daughters. Her zany sense of humor and deep love for her family continued to the end, even as her illness took her brilliant mind. Barbara loved beauty, whether in art and other manifestations of human culture, or in nature. She was truly gentle, and she was a loving soul who meant the world to her husband and family. She created a family home of love. She was a marvelous cook and hostess, she loved to travel, and had a curious mind. She was great fun, and she will be dearly and profoundly missed.
Barbara’s family wants to thanks Compassionate Care of Madison, and particularly Barbara’s CNA Susie, primary nurse Darlene, and pastor Dennis for their loving care in the last year. Caregivers Laura Babb and Patty Hernandez were also dear friends and invaluable helpers during the last year. Barbara’s family cannot thank them enough for the love they showed her.
Bernstein Funeral Home, Athens, GA, is in charge of arrangements.
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