LaVonne Leora Barber

God has a new angel. LaVonne (Lee) Barber passed away at the age of 83 on July 25, 2015. Lee was long preceded in death by her parents Walter and Leora Berg and her brother Keith. Unfortunately Lee was also preceded in death by her youngest daughter Karen and the love of her life Terry. She is survived by her daughters Sheila and Jann; plus her favorite and only son in law Michael. Lee is also survived by her many "grandchildren": Buddy, Bootsie, Muggsie, Maxey, Daisy, Boo and Rodney. Lee was born on November 8, 1931 in Karlstad Minnesota. She spent most of her life living in the state of Minnesota. For about 10 years Lee did live outside of Minnesota while she was married to an Army officer. Together they had 3 daughters, Sheila, Jann and Karen. When that relationship dissolved, Lee wanted to be closer to her parents, so she and her girls returned to Minnesota. There she raised her girls as a single Mother. Lee's girls were her heartbeat, pride and joy. The girls came first, always. Lee was a retired Federal civil servant. She started and ended her civil service career at Fort Snelling Air Force base, located in Minneapolis. Lee started working in the base supply office. She had excellent administrative and people skills that were quickly noticed. Lee soon became the Base Commanders' secretary, a role that she remained in for many, many years. When Col. Ralph decided to retire, Lee decided not to "train" a new commander. Lee became the manager of the base "hotel". After 30+ years, Lee retired from civil service. Early retirement was not for Lee. After a short time she went to work at Bloomingdales, located at the Mall of America. There she organized and ran the crystal/fine china stock room. Her daughters received plenty of beautiful things while Mom was working there. Bloomingdales had great employee discounts. Lee's passions revolved around spending time with her family and friends. She was an avid bowler, slot player, bingo and spades card player. Lee loved to read, especially "Harlequin" romance novels. She and Terry even took up golf. When not busy Lee loved having coffee while watching the birds and squirrels play out back. Her constant companions were the many cats the family had. Lee's most favorite times were her yearly girl trips. Every fall she and her 3 daughters took trips to places like San Francisco, San Diego, Reno, Phoenix and Sedona. The past decade or so found the trips all landing in Las Vegas. The girls trips of 4 soon expanded to include others. The 4 became 8 even 10. Lee's daughters' friends found themselves a second mother. The trips of course included bingo with plenty of laughs, slots and food. About 7 years before her death, Lee started experiencing memory issues. Diagnosed with dementia, Lee was doing exceptionally well being guided and loved by her daughters Karen and Sheila. When the tragic death of her youngest daughter Karen occurred 4 years ago, Lee's minor memory issues became major. Looking back, it seemed that she never really recovered from the death of "her baby girl." Lee moved from Minneapolis about 3 years ago to live closer to her daughter Jann in Tacoma. Lee became a resident of Clare Bridge Memory Care (currently known as Brookdale Puyallup South.) where she quickly became a favorite. Lee quickly assimilated into the Clare Bridge environment. She easily made friends with both residents and staff. That happened through her special hugs, sunny disposition and smiles. There were so many loving, caring, thoughtful people who worked and who currently work at Brookdale. The family is extremely grateful for the loving, gentle care Lee received. Lee was cared for as a Mama. She was Mama Lee to them all. Lee passed away peacefully while sleeping after a struggle with pneumonia. Mama Lee will be and is greatly missed. Her smile, spirit and hugs will live on in everyone's memories. Mama Lee is once again with her "baby girl", the love of her life and the holy father. WE ALL have a new guardian angel. Mama Lee is keeping watch. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ You can shed tears that she is gone Or you can smile because she has lived You can close your eyes and pray that she'll come back Or you can open your eyes and see all she's left Your heart can be empty because you can't see her Or you you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday You can remember her and only that she's gone Or you can cherish her memory and let it live on You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back Or you can do what she'd want: smile, open your eyes, love and go on. Author Unknown