Barbara Ann Gould

GOULD, Barbara Ann, Barbara Ann Gould (née Paretti), devoted wife, mother, grandmother, sister, daughter, aunt, and friend, died peacefully at home in Midlothian, VA on October 3, 2023, with family by her side, at the age of 90.

Barb was beloved by many due to her kindness, warmth, generosity, hospitality, and joyful sense of humor. Her love of family and friends stemmed from her upbringing in a tight knit Italian family in Astoria, Queens, with loving parents and five sisters, as well as several doting aunts and uncles. Barb attended the same Catholic church and elementary school in Astoria as her husband Howard, but they didn't meet until their early 20s after he had started medical school. They fell in love and married in 1956. Barb and Howie were married for 65 years until he passed away in October of 2021, with Barb at his side. They were true partners, through good times and bad.

Barb's childhood dream was to be a mother. She clearly hit that goal out of the park because she went on to have nine children. Her love of children and mothering continued with 24 grandchildren who were the greatest joys in her life.

Barb lived in many places over the years, including New York City; Caribou, ME; Wiesbaden, Germany; Montclair, NJ; Madison, WI; Knoxville, TN; Keowee, SC; and finally Midlothian, VA. Some of these moves were part of our dad's service in the Air Force. She was a proud military spouse and found many ways to support military families over the years. She bravely moved to each new locale with a gaggle of children in tow, and often no family or friends nearby. But she was a social magnet and quickly made life-long friends at every stop along the way.

Barb had a vibrant and curious mind, and was a voracious reader of literature, poetry and non-fiction. After many years of full time child-rearing, she registered for college when her youngest child started Kindergarten. She earned a BA in English and her Masters in Reading Education from University of Wisconsin-Madison. As part of her training, she tutored some of the members of the Wisconsin Badgers football team. When she graduated, Barb joined some of her fellow graduates, many of whom were 25+ years her junior, in joyously popping champagne corks in the air during the ceremony.

Barb was a life-long artist and learner. She loved music and had a beautiful singing voice. At age 60, she took up watercolor painting and eventually mastered that challenging medium. Her paintings were exhibited in numerous art shows when she lived in SC. She stayed active by taking daily power walks around Keowee Lake in SC where she and Howie lived for many years. Her walking speed was the stuff of family legend; had she entered an Olympic speed-walking competition, no doubt she would have medaled. Barb loved the ocean and during her retirement years, she continued to enjoy time by the ocean with countless trips to Pawleys Island, SC.

Her devout Catholic faith and love of Christ were at the core of who she was, and never wavered. Despite the heartbreaking progression of Alzheimer's, Barbara kept her sweet, jovial, and beautiful disposition up to her very last days. She was a joy to anyone she came in contact with, and she rarely uttered a complaint. She greeted everyone with a beautiful and contagious smile and giggle, and her presence is profoundly missed.

She is now reunited not only with her beloved husband and life partner Howie, but also with her parents Tony and Janet, her sisters Joan and Susan Theresa, her granddaughter Maria Helene, her nephew Paul, and her nieces Tara and Danielle, and many other beloved extended relatives and friends. She is survived by her sisters Marie, Carol, and Janet (Paul); her children Susan (Richard), Carolyn; Richard (Beth), Joanne (Richard), Anthony (Maria), Mary Jean, Eileen (Pablo), Laura (Paul) and Margaret (David); her grandchildren Kyle, Corey (Becca), Jessica, Anthony, Evan, Mackenzie, Colin, Anna, Christian (Alison), Matthew (Grisell), Raylene (Zachary), Michael, Lily, Howard, Charles, Abigail, Lauren, Beatrice, Lydia, Janelle, Gracie, Isabel and Natalie; her nephews James, John, and Robert, her niece Dolores, and countless friends who were also very much considered part of her family.

The family is grateful that Barb was lovingly cared for in the home of her daughter Eileen and son-in-law Pablo for many years, and for the love and care provided by Charrond, Caryn, Lea, Dr. Minh Tran, and Father Dan and Deacon David from St Michael's the Archangel Catholic Church.

We welcome all to celebrate Barb's life on Monday, November 6, 2023, at St Michael Catholic Church in Glen Allen, VA with a visitation at 9:30 a.m. EST and mass at 10:30 a.m. EST, followed by the inurnment and a reception. For those who cannot attend in person, the mass will be live-streamed at facebook.com/stmikesvillage.

For those looking to make a donation in Barb's memory, in lieu of flowers please consider these two causes: Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood Registry & Research Collaborative (https://sudcrrc.org/support/) and NYU Langone's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (https://tinyurl.com/barbgould).