Crystal’s Adventures

Love Grandma’s obituary. She would too.

Barbara C. Driesbach, beloved wife, mother, and grandmother passed on
to the next stage of Being on May 6, 2009 in the presence of her husband
and in the excellent care of Marcus Daly Hospice in Hamilton.  She was
born October 3, 1927 in Montague, MA. She and her future husband Paul
K. Driesbach met in the summer of 1946 at the American Youth Hostel, a
bicycling camp for inner-city kids where they both worked as
counselors. After that summer, they corresponded for 5 years, then
married February 3, 1951 in Ann Arbor, MI where Paul was completing a
Master’s degree in forestry. Armed with a position in the US Forest
Service and 1947 pick-up truck they headed west to start their life
together. Barbara loved the rugged, rural locations across the
northwest where she always made a comfortable home for her growing
family. The oldest child, Chris was born in Superior MT, followed by
Anne in Sandpoint, ID, David in Grand Forks, British Columbia, and
Mardee in Seward Territory of AK. Barbara brought literature and poetry into
the lives of her family including whimsical rhymes of Ogden Nash and
Emily Dickinson, elegant quotes from Shakespeare, and lyrical lines of
T.S. Eliot. After Paul retired from the Forest Service, they enjoyed
RV-ing to the pristine beaches of Baja California, collecting shells,
fishing, and beach-combing.  Her last 23 years were spent in Corvallis
in the log cabin home she had always asked for, looking west across
horse pastures to the majestic Bitterroot Range.  In addition to her
husband and children, she is survived by her brother Duncan of Orange
City, FL, and four grandchildren: Crystal (Clinton) of Durham, NC;
Chad (Cady) of Seattle, WA; Tianah of Valencia, CA; and Paulina of San
Jose, CA. There will be a private memorial service later in the year
when more of the family can be together.