Barbara Hughes

Barbara Ann Hughes was born in Birmingham, Alabama on November 21st, 1926, the daughter of Joe and Nellie Bird Dennis. Some of her earliest memories are of moving to Chicago during the Depression so her father could find work, and growing up with her beloved younger brother Bill Dennis. When the family returned to Birmingham she attended West End High School and helped her mother and father in their Venetian blind business.

In 1946, she met and fell in love with Luther Hughes, who had recently returned from military duty in Europe after the Second World War. Married for 59 years, their love for one another never wavered. They lived in many cities as Luke's corporate job took them to places like Cincinnati, Atlanta, and Raleigh, just to name a few. While in Atlanta she worked for the insurance firm INA, and according to her own testament, were the happiest years of her life. They returned to Alabama when Luke retired from Liggett & Myers Tobacco Company. They lived in a lakefront home in Pell City, where they enjoyed having family and friends visit often. She and Luke especially enjoyed fellowship with their family at Doctrinal Studies Bible Church in Birmingham; they often helped out with various weekend youth retreats and other church events, and hosted gatherings at their acreage on Pell Lake. And they enjoyed, above all, having their grandsons Alan and Weston all to themselves during the summer breaks. On a very sad note, Alan passed away at the age of 18 at the hands of a drunk driver: a loss that proved a devastating experience to her and Luke.

When Luke passed away at age 85, she sadly said goodbye to her home and life there, and moved to San Antonio to be with her son and daughter-in-law Terrill and Debra Hughes. She loved spending time with her family and talking to her grandson, Weston, with whom she shared a special bond. She absolutely loved cooking for them, and helping out any way she could in their daily lives. She was most grateful for her new church family at Grace Bible Chapel, where she felt totally at home with the Lord's message.

She passed away on January 27th, 2020. She is now with Luke, her grandson Alan, her brother Bill and sister-in-law Sylvia, and many friends and family who have gone before. She will be missed greatly by her family: her brother-in-law and sister-in-law R.O. and Mary Ellen Hughes of Pell City, Alabama; her nieces Sharon Dennis of Birmingham, Alabama and Kimberly Dennis Neel of Charlottesville, Virginia and all of their children.

Let us all Rejoice in the Lord, as Barbara would want!