Barbara Jean [Langley] Nixon was born in Springfield, Missouri on December 15, 1932, to William and Margaret Langley. She passed away on October 12, 2016, with complications from Alzheimer's. After graduating from Springfield High School in 1950, she attended SMS. She was a member of Sigma Kappa Sorority and voted Ozarko Queen in 1951. She met Jerry Nixon, a dashing TKE, her first year in college; they married in 1952. As newlyweds, they lived in several locations as Jerry served as a Naval Officer.

Barbara and Jerry had seven children. Mom loved babies and children and she was actively involved in many aspects of her children's lives: weekly trips to the library; Girl Scout Leader; serving school lunches; playing catch; teaching daughters and nieces to crochet, embroidery and sew; driving her kids to swim practice and cheering us on from the bleachers. The neighborhood kids loved to hang out at her house, eating cookies, playing in the yard and climbing trees. Snow days were a favorite for all; her home-made hot chocolate was a real treat. Birthdays, Halloween and Thanksgiving were celebrated with gusto.

Barbara and Jerry believed in providing as many experiences as possible for their children. Each Christmas break, they loaded up the station wagon and drove to Mazatlán, Mexico. Barbara was a real trooper as unforeseen adventures unfolded: navigating Minerva Circle in Guadalajara, frigid weather in Copper Canyon and a punctured gas tank when driving through the mountains. Summers at the lake cabin were special: swimming, sailing, water skiing, and riding horses. Grandkids, nieces and nephews loved spending time at the lake with Ma/Aunt Jeannie.

From 1980-1996, Barbara was a volunteer English as a Second Language {ESL} teacher for the Refugee Resettlement Program. She taught beginning English to hundreds of refugees from Vietnam and Cambodia. She adopted families, helping them acclimate to a new country, culture and language; and assisted them with their US Citizenship tests. She traveled to Bataan, Philippines to work in the UNHCR Refugee Camp teaching cultural orientation classes to women. She was awarded the Sertoma Service to Mankind Award for her years of volunteer work with refugees.

Barbara was a curious student of life. She was an avid birdwatcher and loved to travel. She volunteered to band and count Giant Albatross on Midway Atoll; she saw condors in Argentina, macaws in Manu National Park in Peru & puffins in Maine. Her journeys took her to Xi'an, China to see the Terracotta Warriors; Angor Wat in Cambodia; fiords in Norway; Incan ruins at Machu Picchu; Buddhist temples in Bhutan; friends in Warm Springs Bay, Alaska; family and adopted grandkids in the Philippines. Barbara loved life and lived it to the fullest. She REALLY lived!

Barbara was preceded in death by her husband Jerry and son Mark. She is survived by her son Jim (Regina) of Hong Kong; daughter Clare Nixon, Big Sky MT; daughters Nancy Ormsbee (Arthur), Pam Parker, Sarah Nixon (John Fishback), daughter-in-law Jane Nixon; son Luke (Cynthia), all of Springfield; thirteen grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; sister Marianne Crocker, Springfield; sister-in-law Patty Langley, Knoxville, TN; and many nieces and nephews.

Funeral mass will be at 12:00 p.m. noon in St. Agnes Cathedral on Saturday, October 15, 2016. Burial will follow in Resurrection Cemetery.  Visitation will be from 4:00-6:00 p.m. Friday in Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Alzheimer's Association or St. Joseph's Indian School in Chamberlain, SD ( http://www.stjo.org).