Natalie Jane Barber
January 21, 1962 – July 29, 2017
Natalie Jane Barber, 55, passed away Saturday, July 29 th , 2017 after her bravely fought battle with cancer. She was born January 21 st , 1962 to Iva "Coldiron" Williams in West Plains, Missouri.
Natalie spent her early childhood years with her grandparents, Mary and Lawrence Coldiron, in West Plains, MO, but moved to Oklahoma City with her mother and stepfather, Richard Williams. She attended Western Heights High School in Oklahoma City and played the flute in the marching band there, graduating in 1980. Natalie attended Central State University and was a member of Sigma Kappa sorority. She graduated with her B.A. in Sociology in 1986. While attending college, she met her future husband Adam Barber in their nutrition course. Adam and Natalie were married in 1985.
Natalie worked for Central State University before becoming a stay-at-home mom after the birth of her first child, Jessica in 1993. Natalie began working at Washington Irving Elementary in 2006 when her son Andrew was a fourth grader there. She worked at Washington Irving Elementary for 10 years as a Lunch Recess Monitor and After-School Care Program Teacher's Assistant. She loved working with children and continued working at the school until her health condition would no longer allow for it.
Natalie was a devoted wife of 31 years, but had been recently widowed in 2016. She spent her free time on various crafts and was an avid sewer and knitter. She loved to decorate her home with various antique shop finds. Natalie had a life-long love of animals and owned numerous different types of pets including her beloved cats and Boston terriers.
Natalie is preceded in death by her mother and step-father, Iva and Richard Williams and husband Adam Barber. She is survived by her daughter and son, Jessica and Andrew Barber, sister Ginger Coleman, aunt Vonda Hunt, cousins Vonna Doering and Ronna Turner, mother and father-in-law Penny and Ivan Barber, brother and sister-in-law Kevin and Denise Barber, and nephews Trapper Wilson and Ben Barber.
A celebration of Natalie's life will be held Wednesday, August 2, 2017 at 2 p.m. at Matthews Funeral Home in Edmond, OK.