Barbara Anne Corbett

Born in Bayonne, NJ to John and Eleanor (nee Carney) Morgan, she resided there until she married Denis Corbett at age 21 and then briefly resided in Germany while Denis served in the United States Army. She then returned to the United States and her home in Toms River, where she lived for the past 55 years.

Barbara was a parishioner of St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church in Toms River for many years, where all three of her girls went to grade school and then to Monsignor Donovan High School. Prior to retiring in 2010, she was a teacher in Lacey Township School District (Lanoka Harbor and then Cedar Creek Elementary). Barbara’s love of teaching began at the Head Start program in Jersey City. She even taught while in Germany, despite being pregnant with Melissa, which was somewhat shocking to the German women she befriended. After being at home with her three girls in their early years, she returned to her passion, teaching first grade, then helping to pilot the transitional first (“T-1”) program, and finally becoming a Reading Recovery specialist. In her own words, this was the “highlight of her career.” She was blessed to work with so many children and made a real difference in watching her students become readers over her 32 year career. Cedar Creek Elementary became a second home for Barbara, and her colleagues there became lifelong friends. As she told her girls, she never felt like she was going to work, she was always just “going to school.” Her heart was always full.

Barbara found tremendous joy in her family and put them before anything else. For a long time it was just her and her three girls, and those years together forged a tremendous bond of love among them. Barbara worked tirelessly picking up a second and sometimes third job to keep her girls in Catholic school, and she rejoiced in their accomplishments. She enjoyed bringing her family together and creating happy memories, with Barbara always being the family photographer. Whether it was family vacations to the beach, St. Patrick’s Day parades, Halloween hayrides, concerts at the beach, or playing progressive gin rummy around the table, she always found joy just being with her family. No one could make a better Irish coffee than Barbara, and she will be joyfully remembered for her many M&M and sandcastle cakes. Over the years her family expanded to include wonderful sons-in-law, grand-dogs and grand-kitties, and her eight beloved grandchildren (“eight is great”). Barbara became Uma, and her grandchildren were her whole world. Barbara’s calendars and planners were filled with all the activities her grandchildren were doing, and she loved being the constantly present grandmother at all of their school and sporting events. All who knew her knew that her family always came first. Barbara was also a great friend and a lover of books and cats.

Surviving are her daughters Melissa Geist (Spike) of Yardley, PA, Melanie Henry (Steve) of Toms River, NJ, Michelle Baxter of Toms River, NJ, and “adopted” daughter Karen Sykes of Bedminster, NJ, a sister, Joan Kucyk Halasz, and many wonderful cousins, nieces and nephews. Barbara is also survived by her grandchildren Morgan (Rob), Daniel, Clayton, Tyler, Ryan, Delaney, Thomas, and Shea. Barbara was blessed to hold her great granddaughter, Norah Elizabeth (born August 18 to Morgan and Rob) before she passed.

A memorial visitation will be held on Sunday, September 20 from 2:00pm to 6:00pm at Anderson and Campbell Funeral Home, 703 Main Street, Toms River, NJ. A funeral mass will be held on Monday, September 21 at 10:00am at St. Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, 685 Hooper Ave, Toms River, NJ. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Bridge of Books Foundation to honor Barbara’s love of teaching children to read.