Deborah Pitman Barinowski

Deborah Pitman Barinowski, 66, of Lilburn, died in hospice on Monday, June 23rd. She was born on October 31, 1947, in Augusta, Georgia, and lived in North Augusta until moving to the Atlanta area in 1982 when her husband was transferred there with Georgia Pacific. Deborah was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in October but only recently learned the cancer had spread and was terminal. She is survived by her husband of 48 years, John Barinowski; two children, Wendy Barinowski Lynch and David Barinowski; their spouses, Robert Lynch and Kristen Myers Barinowski; four grandchildren, Peyton and Beckett Lynch and Averi and Joshua Barinowski; and her brother, Arthur Pitman, and sister, Jennifer Pitman Van Horn.

In December 2010, Deborah retired after 24 years from her job as the Volunteer Resource Coordinator for Gwinnett DFCS, where she enjoyed the challenge of finding the resources to make life a little easier for those in need. Prior to her job at DFCS and moving to Atlanta, she served as Marketing Director at South Gate Shopping Center in Augusta and Assistant Art Director at the Augusta Chronicle. She loved the competition of sports and continued playing basketball after high school as an all-star player on an Augusta City League team. In Atlanta, Deborah played ALTA tennis until knee surgery prevented it. Her top priority, however, was always her family, and she rarely missed any of her children’s activities or opportunities to celebrate a birthday, holiday, or any possible occasion for opening gifts, and that dedication continued with her grandchildren, who live close by.

A very important part of Deborah’s life was her Christian faith, and she was very involved in her church, Evangel Community Church, where she served on the pastoral search committee and as Head Usher. She and her husband, John, enjoyed attending services and also many social occasions with their close-knit church family. She will be especially missed by their weekly “game night” members, a group she started twelve years ago. Growing up attending Augusta’s Bethany Chapel for many years, studying the scriptures was an integral part of her everyday routine since childhood.

Deborah had a personality bigger than life and a definite gift for administration. If you wanted something done, she was the person to make it happen. She was tall, vibrant, redheaded, and you knew when she had entered the room. She was not afraid to tell you how she felt about her faith or politics or whatever. She loved to bake, and no occasion or family gathering would be complete without her pies, cakes, or cookies. She was very particular about almost everything, and when she made apple pies, there would always be two kinds, one with the peeling still on the apple slices and one without, because she wanted to please everyone in the family. Every outfit was coordinated with matching shoes, purses, earrings, etc., and even in her final hospital and subsequent hospice days, she put on her makeup. She was such a presence in the family that we cannot imagine the void we will feel as we fully realize that she is no longer with us. Wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, sister-in-law, friend - she will be missed.

Visitation will be this Saturday, June 28, at Evangel Community Church, 3857 Centerville Rosebud Rd., Snellville, GA 30039, from 11am to 12:30pm, with funeral service to follow at 1:00pm. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Evangel Community Church in memory of Deborah Barinowski.

Arrangements under the direction of Eternal Hills Funeral Home, Snellville, GA.