Barbara Joan Bishop

1935 - 2019

Barbara Joan Bishop, RN,BSN,CNP

Barbara Joan Bishop passed away quietly at the family home in Las Cruces, New Mexico early Christmas morning, December 25, 2018.

She lived 83 incredible years. Barb was born in Buffalo, New York on October 20, 1935 to Dwight Shaw and Betty Van Camp Shaw. The family, including Barb's younger sister Carol, moved to Chicago and then to St. Louis. In 1949, when Barb was only 14 and Carol 11, both parents died. She and Carol were taken in by relatives. Barb lived with several relatives and finally with her Uncle Anson and Aunt Luella (Aunt Lou) Van Camp, along with their daughter Claire who became like a sister to Barb.

In 1952 after graduating from High School in Detroit, Barb was accepted into the renown Clara Ford School of Nursing at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. In 1956, as the Valedictorian of her nursing class, she had the honor of presenting her Commencement Address to Clara and Edsel Ford, Henry Ford's wife and son.

In 1956, Barb married Alfred (Al) Bishop, a chemical engineer. About 1971, after working in engineering for many years, at the age of 40, he decided to become a dentist. He was accepted into the first class of the new Loyola School of Dentistry in Chicago. Barb worked as the head pediatric nurse at a nearby hospital while raising their three children and putting Al through three years of dental school. During one summer, they all spent three months helping the Havaspai Indians at their village in the bottom of the Grand Canyon in Arizona. Al did dentistry and Barb helped the Indian people and raised her children.

In 1975, after Al graduated from the dental school, they were trying to decide where to go. Uncle Anson and Aunt Lou had traveled extensively after retirement, and they were very impressed with Las Cruces. Al found out that more dentists were desperately needed, so they moved to Las Cruces. Al joined a dental practice and Barb decided to take some time off, after three years of overwork in Chicago. In 1977, NMSU started a new Nursing Program that offered a Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing. Barb had a three year certificate RN, and knew that a degree would be helpful. She applied and was accepted, and started studies in 1977. Two years later she graduated with honors. Because her last name was Bishop, starting with a "B", she was the first person to receive her Bachelor of Science Degree in Nursing from NMSU.

Soon she was working as a BSN at the Memorial Medical Center in Las Cruces and soon after NMSU hired her as a part-time nursing instructor. She then wanted to try Public Health Nursing and got a position with the El Paso Public Health Department. With this job she gained valuable experience working with the Hispanic population and indigent families. After commuting the 100 mile roundtrip for several years, she decided to seek a position in Las Cruces.

She accepted an RN position at the Planned Parenthood Office in Las Cruces and she began some of her most rewarding work of her lifetime. This was at the beginning of the HIV Aids
epidemic and she became very involved with the dread disease. Planned Parenthood needed a Certified Nurse Practitioner (CNP)and offered her a full scholarship to attend UNM to get the certification if she would come back to work for them after graduation. She commuted for two years, often studying in her car, while driving, on the 460 mile roundtrip weekly. Again, she graduated with honors and received her CNP. She continued working with Planned Parenthood until the Las Cruces office lost its funding and closed its doors. During that time Barb and Al separated and then divorced in 1983 after 27 years of marriage.

In 1987,she joined the New Mexico Public Health Department and worked out of the Las Cruces Office as a CNP. She provided prenatal and Family Planning Clinics in towns across southern New Mexico including Reserve, Silver City, Lordsburg, Deming, T or C, Socorro, Alamogordo, Anthony and Chaparral. She felt that if at the end of the day, at least one woman's life was made better because of her, then she knew that she had served her profession well. She knew that professionally and ethically she had to be a voice for voiceless women, especially those that were indigent, disenfranchised, and not English speaking. One of the high points of her work with the New Mexico Public Health Department was when she was asked to represent the entire Department and make a presentation to the New Mexico Board of Nursing. The Department was requesting that CNP's in New Mexico, be able to provide care for any medical problems that they had been trained to address in their CNP Program, post graduate training or on the job training. The Board unanimously approved the Department's request that Barb had so convincingly presented. As a result of their decision, CNP's in New Mexico can provide a wider spectrum of services than many other states.

Barb and Hale had been active members of the Unitarian Universalist Church of Las Cruces for many years. They met while being members of the Board of Directors. In 1996 they got together and began a loving partnership that lasted 22 years, until her death. Since both had been previously married, they decided not to marry but to have a Commitment Ceremony with all of their families and a few friends at their home, "The Ranch" on Sandhill Road. It was just like a wedding, but no papers were signed. Barb and Hale had much in common including love of life, the outdoors, camping and traveling. They visited the beautiful Conejos River in southern Colorado many times. They also traveled to six of the seven continents. The only continent they missed was Antarctica. They visited twelve different countries and made many friends. Their travel included visiting Machu Picchu, the Galapagos Islands, Alaska and Hawaii. They both loved animals and during their 22 years together they had six dogs and many cats. Barb's favorite was "Daizy" a golden retriever which was like a precious daughter to her. Barb and Hale finally did marry in 2002 when his health insurance company left New Mexico. She gave Hale a hard time about getting married for health insurance, but she agreed they were really already married. Barb often said to Hale that those 22 years with him were the best years of her life.

In 1998, after retiring from Public Health, Barb worked with several local doctors providing information to their patients who had osteoporosis. Because of the wide variety and quality of services she had provided for many years to patients in New Mexico and El Paso, in 2006
at the age of 71, Barb received the NMSU Distinguished Alumni Award from the College of Health and Social Services. It was the first time that an Alumnus from the college had received this award. Barb was very proud of the work that she had done over her lifetime and was honored to receive this award that recognized her lifelong achievements.

At the end of her life Barb said " I want the memories of my life to give Joy, not Sorrow, to my family, friends, co-workers, and patients." She truly spread Joy in the World.

Barb was preceded in death by her mother Betty Van Camp Shaw and her father Dwight C Shaw.


Barb is survived by her husband, friend, and partner Hale Huber, her daughter Sara (Sally) Bishop Campbell, her sons Timothy Bishop (Nathan Francisco) and Andrew Bishop, her sister Carol Waschull, her cousin Claire Odenhiem (Ken), her granddaughters Heather Campbell and Meghan Thomas (Josh), her grandson Tyler Ray, and her great-grandchildren Killian Thomas and Rorek Thomas.


Memorials:

1. Mesilla Valley Hospice

Email: nsalmon@mvhospice.org,/ dedication: Mesilla Valley Hospice, in memory of Barbara Bishop

2. Unitarian Universalist Church of Las Cruces

Email: office@uuchurchLC.org. dedication: UUCLC in memory of Barbara Bishop


3. Doctors Without Borders Email: donations@newyork.msf.org. dedication" in memory of Barbara Bishop




Thank yous:

Barb's Family wishes to thank the following people for their care and support:

Dr. Kathy Burke, Rev. Mary Anne Ford, Dr Alan Orellano, Tina Guervara, RN and the rest of the staff at the Mesilla Valley Hospice, as well as the staff at Memorial Medical Center ER.


Cremation has taken place. No Funeral Service will be held.

Arrangements are with La Paz-Graham's Funeral Home, 555 West Amador, Las Cruces, NM 88005. To sign the online guest book visit: www.lapaz-grahams.com.