Barbara Lee Hurst's Obituary
Barbara Hurst, age 71 of Centerville, Iowa passed away Sunday, January 18, 2015 at her home.
She was born in Centerville, Iowa on January 9, 1944 to Robert and Gladys (Spurgeon) Hulen. Barbara graduated from Bloomfield High School with the Class of 1961. She was united in marriage to Frank Leo Hurst in Lancaster, Missouri on December 23, 1969.
Barbara spent her life taking care of people; she took care of her husband for many years during his illness while working fulltime. She was a strong person, always putting her husband and daughter before herself.
She was employed at the Department of Human Services for over 25 years. Her coworkers remember her as a friend to anyone who was in need. She was a union steward for several years and was passionate about employee rights. Above all, she served clients with respect and compassion. She would go above and beyond expectations for clients who had the least income and minimal support. Her mission at DHS was to serve those less fortunate and her dedication to that mission was reflected in her day to day priorities at her workplace.
Barbara was also a lover of animals and spent countless hours feeding, saving, and transporting animals to a ""no kill"" shelter in Des Moines. Barbara was never without a pet, she was known to have quite the troop of dogs, and no one loved animals like she did. After her retirement she worked at New Focus and enjoyed spending time with the people there. She also worked at Comfort Keepers helping elderly and sick people in their homes
In recent years she had enjoyed daily lunches with the people at the 18-80 club and attending church at the 2nd Baptist Church. She loved working in the yard, she always had a beautiful flower garden. She passed that love of gardening and rock hunting down to her daughter; they spent many weekends rock hunting at the lake and in farm fields around the county. She had been known to pull over and pick up any rock no matter the size anywhere. She moved those from house to house as the years went on and every one of those rocks now has a place at her daughter's home. Barbara loved her family and spending time with them, she always had music playing and loved to dance, many remember how she showed off her polka skills at her daughter's wedding.
The illness took away much of her memory but it couldn't take away her sense of humor, her loud recognizable laugh and her love for being around people especially her daughter and grandkids.
Barbara is survived by her daughter, Amber (Rocky) White of Centerville, Iowa; three grandchildren, Abigail, John, and Leo White all of Centerville, Iowa; her mother, Gladys Hulen of Bloomfield, Iowa; two siblings, Jim Hulen of Centerville, Iowa and Roberta Meyers of Bloomfield, Iowa.
She was preceded in death by her father, her husband and a sister; Beverly Cowles.
Memorial services will be held at 10 AM, Saturday, January 24, 2015 at Lange Funeral Home and Crematory in Centerville with Reverend Brian Hargrave officiating. Private burial will take place at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions have been established to either the Lord's Cupboard in Centerville or to Animal Lifeline of Iowa and may be mailed to Lange Funeral Home and Crematory, 1900 S. 18th St., Centerville, Iowa 52544. A visitation will be held on Friday at the funeral home, with the family greeting friends from 5-7 PM. Condolences may be shared online at www.langefh.com.
Visitation
January 23, 2015 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM
Lange Funeral Home 1900 S. 18th St. Centerville, IA (641) 856-2000
Memorial Service
January 24, 2015 10:00 AM
Lange Funeral Home 1900 S. 18th St. Centerville, IA (641) 856-2000
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