1927 – 2019

Barbara Jean Sherman, a 61-year resident of La Cañada Flintridge, passed away peacefully and gently at her home on June 18. She was 92 years old.

She was born Barbara Jean to Thomas and Frances Ryan in San Diego in 1927, and lived with her parents and sisters Patricia, Annabelle and Geraldine in Point Loma, attending Point Loma High School. She then attended San Diego State where she met her future husband, a Marine Corps veteran of WWII, Arthur J. Sherman, another San Diego resident. They were married in 1947 at St. Agnes Catholic Church in Point Loma.

After Art graduated from Art Center College of Design, he and Barbara were excited to move to New York City where Art worked at McCann Erickson advertising. They welcomed their eldest daughter, Robin, in Quantico, Virginia when Art was briefly called back to the Marine Corps during the Korean War, and daughter Kim was born in New Rochelle, New York when Barbara and Art returned to that state. In 1955, they returned to California where daughter Susan was born in San Diego, and lived in Westchester before moving to La Cañada in 1958. Daughters Cary and Juliet were both born in the Los Angeles area.

Barbara and Art belonged to the Newcomers Club and were avid bridge players in their early years in La Cañada. Barbara was a supportive and hard-working mother of five daughters under the age of 12, and her daughters loved to make her laugh. The five girls all attended Palm Crest Elementary, Foothill Intermediate School, and graduated from La Cañada High School.

Barbara worked for 20 years in the health care field for local doctors. Art and Barbara spent many happy hours sailing to and from Catalina Island when Art belonged to a sailing club, usually mooring at the Isthmus, and enjoyed trips to Tahiti where they had a timeshare. Barbara and Art had celebrated 49 years of marriage when Art passed away in 1996.

Barbara still loved to travel and made it her mission to travel widely in her retirement years, including a cross-country tour across Canada, a river cruise on the Danube through Germany, Austria and Hungary, and trips to Spain, London, Italy, Germany, Ireland, Hawaii and U.S. locations.

Barbara volunteered for several years at the Descanso Gardens gift shop, and was active at Holy Redeemer Catholic Church in Montrose. At Holy Redeemer she belonged to the Marthas and Marys group and participated in Brothers’ Helpers weekly.

Barbara was a humorous person who loved to read Dickens, watch old movies and sing. She completed the Los Angeles Times crossword puzzle every day for almost 60 years. She had many lifelong friends, and was a caring and self-sacrificing mother to her five daughters, all living in California: Robin Price of Novato (husband Paul); Kimberly Kadletz of Montrose (husband Dennis), Susan Vignale of San Juan Capistrano (husband Steve), Cary Horne of La Cañada (husband Jack), and Juliet Kelly of Novato (husband Gregg). Barbara also leaves nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

A family memorial rosary and Mass will be held this fall at St. Agnes Catholic Church in Point Loma where Barbara and Art were married.

Interment will be at Holy Cross Catholic Cemetery in San Diego. Cabot and Sons of Pasadena are handling mortuary services.

The family would like to thank her three devoted caregivers who loved Barbara and treated her like a family member, and especially grandson Trevor Kadletz who maintained Barbara’s home and tended to her well-being.

Barbara’s family is grateful for kind thoughts being sent their way and thankful for those friends for whom Barbara had fond memories in her final years.

Cabot & Sons, Pasadena