Born in Portland on October 9,1926 to Ervin and Edna Mathews, Barb soon moved with her parents to Campobello, NB. Barb would tell stories of island life that included watching whales with her grandfather, playing with cousins and friends and beginning school in Canada. In the fourth grade the family moved to Eastport, Maine. On that day a boy in her class went home and told his mother that“a girl moved to town from Campobello and I’m going to marry her”. True to his word Barb and Kenneth J. Shannon were wed in Eastport on October 1, 1945.
Barb spent her younger years in Eastport and graduated Shead Memorial High School in 1944. Barb trained and served as an Airplane Spotter during WWII, worked canning sardines and later at the “old Newberry’s store” in Eastport. Barb and Ken (he tended to call her Lucy) had 2 children, Patricia and Michael before moving to Portland in 1953.
In 1958 the family moved to Beverly, Massachusetts. Barb worked in banking at the Beverly Trust Company ultimately becoming the head of the mortgage department.
She became very active in the Order of the Eastern Star, holding several positions, rising to become Worthy Matron (with Ken as Worthy Patron), and later held state offices.
From 1975-1980, Ken and Barb lived in St. Louis, Missouri. It was there where annual vacations to Hawaii began. Barb and husband Ken moved back to Portland in 1980 and spent many fond years traveling around in their motorhome. Barb’s beloved husband Ken died on October 28, 1989. In time, she continued her motorhome adventures, ocean cruising, and traveling to Hawaii.
In 1992 Barb met Martin (Marty) H. Lyden at a dance and the two shared a wonderful and loving companionship for twenty years dancing, traveling in the motorhome and going on cruises until Marty passed on April 3, 2012.
In 2015 Barb moved from her home in Portland to live with her son Mike and his wife Kathleen in Old Orchard Beach where she met many new friends and became known as The Queen of School Street.
Barb is survived by her children Patricia (Shannon) LaPierre & husband Winston, son Michael D. Shannon & wife Kathleen, eleven grandchildren, twelve great-grandchildren, two great-great grandchildren, cousins, nieces and nephews and numerous friends. Barb is pre-deceased by an infant sister Leona, parents Ervin and Edna (Knowles) Mathews, husband Kenneth J. Shannon, and companion Martin H. Lyden.
Friends and relatives are invited to attend her funeral at 2:00pm Tuesday, June 29, 2021, at Jones, Rich & Barnes Funeral Home, 199 Woodford St., Portland ME. The service will be livestreamed. Interment will take place at later date at the Veteran’s Cemetery in Augusta, Maine.
