Barbara Lee Park Meyer

July 28, 1929 - March 27, 2017

Obituary for Barbara Lee Park Meyer Barbara Lee Park Meyer of Newberg, Oregon,died on March 27, 2017, following a stroke. Barbara was born on July 28, 1929, in Los Angeles, California, the first child of Bessie and Wayne Park. Her siblings are Jerry Park and SylviaPark Osborn. Barbara grew up in southern California, where she enjoyed swimming, taught lifesaving, and was a leader in her high school student government. She attended the University of California at Berkeley as an undergraduate. There she met Alan, and they married in 1950. Barbara received a research fellowship at Purdue University and completed her masters degree in chemistry there in 1954. Her academic honors included induction into Phi Beta Kappa at UC Berkeley and becoming an associate member of Sigma Xi (the Scientific Research Honor Society) at Purdue. Barbara worked as a lab technician until she became a mother in 1954. She and Alan raised four children. For about 14 years, she devoted her attention to home life and community service, including serving as a member of the YWCA Board (1965-68) and on the YWCA Executive Committee (1967-68), helping to organize the Childbirth Education Association of Portland as Shattuck District Director, and helping to set up classes in Preparation for Childbirth for the United Good Neighbor drive (1966). She also served on the PTA and sang in the choir of the First Unitarian Church in Portland. As the children grew, she also found time to engage in science, serving as research assistant for Alan on sabbatical in Costa Rica (1966) and auditing university courses in microbial metabolism, biochemistry, and nutrition. Barbara eventually taught chemistry and microbiology to nursing students at Portland Community Collegeand, after retiring in 1990, worked with Alan in his microbiology lab at OHSU. Costa Rica, Romania, England, Czechoslovakia, Australia, and China were some of the countries where Barbara and Alan did microbiological research. The Meyer family moved from southwest Portland to a farm in Tualatin in 1968, and ten years later to a Christmas tree farm in Newberg, where Barbara and Alan lived for 34 years before moving to Astor House in February of 2012. Barbara's love of music was a gift that she shared with her family and community. There was a lot of singing in the family, whether at home or on the road. Each child took music lessons and, after piano, most branched out to other instruments as well. In her later years, Barbarabegan piano lessonswith Chris Lauinger and performed pieces in recitals, with a particular preference for the works of Chopin. Some other activities that Barbara was involved in after retiring included volunteering in drama productions with international students at George Fox, participating in community choir performances of Handel's Messiah and other works, and taking care of cats at Cat Adoption Team. She brought her beloved cat, Princess, to Astor House when she and Alan moved there. Barbara's legacy includes an Oregon Community Foundation scholarship to assist community-college students entering university. Barbara was preceded in death by her parents, Bessie and Wayne, and her brother-in-law, Steve. She is survived by her beloved husband of 67 years, Alan; her four children, Martha (Trandafir), David (Jane), Paul (Kim), and Matthew (Melissa); her five grandchildren, Daniela, Brittany, Ben, Marguerite, and Madeleine; her brother Jerry (Sharon), sister Sylvia, sister-in-law Margaret, and six nieces and nephews. Barbara faced several health challenges in the final seven years of her life. Her grace and inner strength in dealing with these challenges were remarkable. Her family is grateful for the assistance provided by caregivers from Trilogy Home Care, who during Barbara's final months greatly enhanced the quality of life of both Barbara and Alan. A time of remembering and celebrating Barbara's life will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, April 22, at West Hills Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 8470 S.W. Oleson Rd., Portland, OR 97223, followed by refreshments from noon to 1 p.m. People who would like to share in front of the group are invited to prepare a brief story from their time with Barbara. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Barbara's memory to Oregon Public Broadcasting, the Community Transitional School, Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, Planned Parenthood, Habitat for Humanity, or another charity. For further information, please contact David Meyer 503 246 1239 [email protected] or Alan Meyer 3801 Hayes St. Unit 231 Newberg OR 97132