90, of Norfolk, passed away on February 12, 2023.
Born in Boston, MA on April 2, 1932, she was the daughter to the late Lewis L. and Margaret L. (Keefe) Bartholomew.
Barbara grew up in Norfolk and Walpole. She graduated from Walpole High School. She went on to earn a bachelor’s in art and science, Magna Cum Laude with Department Honors from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
Barbara was a devoted teacher of American History at Ashland Public Schools. She served as Chairman of the Social Studies Department, Senior Yearbook and Class Advisor, Varsity Field Hockey and Softball Coach and Coached the Academic Decathlon Team. In addition to her teaching and coaching over the years, Barbara was Chairman of the Division of Girls and Women in Sports, DGWS Consultant to the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association, Co-Founder/Director of the MIAA’s State Girls Field Hockey Tournament and Member of the New Balance Hall of Fame. In her free time, she served as a member of the Norfolk Historical Commission along with the Walpole Historical Society. An avid reader and historian, Barbara authored two books: Life and Times of Bertha Fales; and History on the Hill Collection. She also did research for Settlement at Stop River Falls by Charles Hardy.
Barbara was predeceased by her sister Rita K. Bartholomew Mahoney.
A Funeral Mass was held Friday, February 24, 2023 at 10:30AM at St. Mary’s Parish, 130 South Street, Wrentham, MA. With a burial that followed at St. Francis Cemetery, Washington Street Walpole, MA.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Barbara’s memory may be made to The American Lung Association at www.lung.org.
