Barbara Elaine (Kist) Dooley

She died on a Sunday, February 16, 2025, at home in Pickens, South Carolina with her family close and love closer. It was where she wanted to be.

Barbara slipped away as quietly as she lived but don’t let that fool you. She was a force. The kind that could run a household, rear four busy boys, balance a checkbook, and convince a stubborn man he needed a new tie all before lunch.

Born in Hillsdale, New Jersey, to the late Eleanor and Richard Kist, Barbara grew up with the virtues of hard work and common sense stitched into her very bones. Penn State, Class of 1965, sharpened her mind. Chuck Dooley captured her heart. She married him on graduation day, because efficiency is a virtue. And because when you meet the right man, there is no sense in wasting time.

Then came the journey: Germany, Thailand, military life, boxes always half-packed. Every new station brought new neighbors, new churches, new adventures. But Barbara had a gift, she could unpack a home faster than most people find their silverware. And she could make friends even quicker.

In 1970 Barbara and Chuck returned to New Jersey. She found her calling at Stern’s Department Store, Men’s Furnishings. Yes, men’s shirts, ties, and suits. Because someone had to make sure the men of Bergen County didn’t walk around looking like they dressed in the dark. Barbara took pride in her work-- helping husbands, sons, and the occasional fashion-blind bachelor walk out looking like they had their lives together even if they didn’t.

In 2010, after 15 years living on Long Beach Island, NJ, retirement brought Barbara and Chuck to Pickens, South Carolina. But Barbara wasn’t built for idleness. She poured her energy into the YMCA, co-founded the Upstate Parkinson’s Society Support Group, and made sure her community knew that slowing down was a choice, one she never made.

Her faith was Lutheran, quiet, steady, the kind you didn’t need to announce because it was evident in how she lived. She loved puzzling with her daughters-in-law and playing games with her grandchildren. Though whether she let them win or they simply outplayed her sparked many family debates. She was an avid reader. Saw the bright side, always. Loved fiercely.

Her family was her greatest work: Chuck, her husband of 60 years, who never left the house in a wrinkled shirt under her watch; her four sons Jeffrey (Carole) in New York, Scott (Sabina) in Virginia, Brian (Dawn) in South Carolina, Sean (Lucienne) in Pennsylvania.

And the grandchildren, scattered across the globe like souvenirs from a life well-lived: Conner (Mao) in Japan, Sara (Sheridan) in Colorado, Katherine in Massachusetts, Jackson in South Carolina, Chiara, Autumn, Fiona in Pennsylvania. Each one inheriting a bit of Barbara’s stubbornness, humor, and eye for detail.

Barbara was predeceased by her brother, Frederick Kist. Still with us are her nephew Richard and her sister-in-law, Anne.

Barbara was surely welcomed into her new heavenly home with coffee, conversation, and an invitation to a good card game.

She didn’t want flowers. She wanted laughter. She wanted family gathered, cards on the table, coffee brewing, arguments over who dealt last.

So that’s what we’ll do.

A celebration of life will be held Saturday, March 1, 2025, at 12:30 PM, at Dillard Memorial Funeral Home, 2402 Gentry Memorial Highway, Pickens, South Carolina. Visitation begins at 11:00 am.

Donations, if you are inclined, to the Upstate Parkinson’s Society because Barbara believed communities thrive when people roll up their sleeves.

Online condolences may be expressed to the family by visiting www.dillardfunerals.com. Dillard Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.