Barbara Jane Watkins

Barbara Jane Watkins, 72, died April 6, 2010, at Mat-Su Regional Medical Center of cardio-pulmonary complications.

A service will be held today at 4 p.m. at Legacy Kehl’s Palmer Chapel. Barb’s son Johnny will give the eulogy.

Barbara was born on March 2, 1938, in Gillette, Ark. Barb dropped out of school to marry and have her son. She showed great pride and character by earning a GED in her late 30s. She relocated from Ukiah, Calif., in 1975 with her young daughter, Terri, and husband, who worked as a North Slope Teamster. Barb mostly lived in Anchorage, but spent brief periods in Kenai (1985), Fairbanks (1987) and settled in Palmer (2008), where she lived with her daughter and granddaughter.

Barb worked as a hair stylist for more than 40 years, graduating beauty college in California in 1963. She owned and operated two salons (1963-1975 in Ukiah, late 1970s in Anchorage). She also worked and taught at three Anchorage beauty schools (1980 at John Anthony’s and Ariel’s, early 2000s at Gabriel’s). She also earned her state credential to administer licensing exams to new stylists, barbers, nail technician, and cosmetology instructors. Barb gradually reduced her working schedule and retired in 2008. Her artistic talents were also evident in her canvas and gold pan paintings of Alaska landscapes, which she generally kept in the family, but occasionally sold to others upon request.

Her family wrote, “Barb was a modest woman of humble beginnings who worked hard and gladly sacrificed for her family. She was earnest and without pretense and people found her to be trustworthy of their confidence and purse. Barb had a natural gift and love for teaching that came through to her students as a genuine concern and commitment for their success. As a mother and grandmother to us, she was and will continue to be a treasure in our hearts.

She is survived by three children; two sons-in-law; and three grandchildren, all of the Mat-Su and Anchorage areas, except her son and daughter-in-law in Bellingham, Wash. Her brother and extended family live in Arkansas, while her aunts and uncles (and their immediate families) live in Northern California.