Barbara Hansen Reding

1945 - 2025

Barbara Hansen Reding
08/30/1945 - 05/29/2025
Barbara Hansen Reding, 79, died peacefully, surrounded by her three devoted daughters. She was predeceased by her husband, John ("Jack") Anthony Reding, and her parents Helen Walker Hansen and George Francis Hansen. She is survived by her three loving daughters, Katherine Reding Hall, Ann Marie Reding, and Erin Hansen Reding. Her sons-in-law Timothy Hall, Ajay Krishnan, and Eryk Gettell were like sons to her. She adored her eight grandchildren, Jack, Sam, and Mia Hall; Arjun, Narayan, and Ishan Krishnan; and Owen and Jane Gettell. Her immediate family also includes her two sisters, Judy Hansen Somers and Linda Hansen Walker, and their beautiful families.
Born and raised in San Francisco, Barbara was a true city girl at heart-her love for the hilly streets, foggy mornings, bustling neighborhoods, and breathtaking views never waned. Yet, childhood summers spent along the Russian River in Healdsburg - floating on innertubes, spitting watermelon seeds, and routinely suffering poison oak - sparked a lifelong love of the outdoors. The mountains in Tahoe were a special sanctuary to her throughout her life.
Barbara met Jack, her doting husband, at University of California at Berkeley, where she graduated with an A.B. degree in 1967. Barbara and Jack made the East Bay their home for the rest of their lives, raising their girls as devoted Cal Bears fans. Barbara began her professional life as a teacher, but it was in motherhood that she found her true calling. After the birth of her first daughter, she chose to stay home full-time, dedicating herself to the joys of raising a family. Barbara hosted playgroups for preschool, was the director of her daughters' swim team, stayed up late to offer help with her daughters' projects and papers, and never missed a school play or sporting event. She often remarked that raising her three daughters was her "life's work."
Barbara put an enormous amount of love and attention into Jack and her daughters, but also into relationships with her sisters and friends. Throughout her life, she continued to cultivate friendships with women she met in elementary school, college, and in her child-rearing days. Her female friendships were sacred.
A lifelong learner, Barbara loved to travel, visit museums, play mahjong, tend to her garden, explore music, and read. She brought her educator's heart and mind to her beloved book club, often preparing for discussions with the same rigor and enthusiasm she once brought to the classroom. Her friends and family knew they could count on her insights, thoughtfulness, and intellectual curiosity, in all areas of life.
Her belief in the strength of family, her deep intelligence, her boundless capacity to love, and her bright smile will be missed by all who knew her. Barbara always said her children and grandchildren were her gifts, but her family and friends know that Barbara, Barbie, Mom, or BB, was our beautiful gift.
A memorial gathering for family and friends will be held in August, with a date to be announced.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you spend an afternoon outdoors, get lost in a good book, or call someone you love-all things Barbara would have wanted.