Barbara Stone Bedient lately of Barboursville, West Virginia died January 20, 2018 at Wyngate Senior Living Community after a long illness. She was born in New London, Connecticut on January 28, 1923 and grew up enjoying the outdoors, swimming and canoeing with her father on Long Island Sound in the summers and ice skating in the winters. She was the oldest of three children. In 1941 she graduated from the Williams Memorial Institute (now Williams School) in New London then attended the University of Connecticut at Storrs from which she graduated 1945. During summer vacations, Barbara worked in the war effort as an electrician's assistant at the Electric Boat Company in Groton, Connecticut where she learned to wire submarines. In 1944, at the age of 21, she was proud to cast her first vote for FDR. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Bacteriology making her the first person in her family to receive a college degree. After graduation Barbara worked as a laboratory technician, first at Boston Children's Hospital, then at Parke-Davis in Detroit and then at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor. It was there that she met Jack D. Bedient at a dance for returned servicemen. Barbara had a desire to 'go west,' so in 1949 she and Jack married and Barbara accepted a technician position in the Medical School at the University of Washington. For their honeymoon, the couple drove a 1937 Ford from Ann Arbor to Seattle. After Jack completed his teaching certificate at the University of Washington he was hired to teach mathematics in Port Angeles, Washington where the couple moved in 1950. It was there that their four children were born. In 1959, the family moved again for Jack to attend graduate school at the University of Colorado in Boulder. During these years, the young family of six lived in very modest married student housing which tested Barbara's ingenuity and ability to save money and create space. Jack was hired by the mathematics department at Arizona State University in Tempe where the family moved in 1963. In Tempe Barbara was active in the lives of her children and the community. She was a Girl Scout leader and room mother, was involved in PEO and church and was committed to providing meaningful developmental opportunities for her intellectually disabled son, Jeff. She and Jack helped establish the Tempe Center for the Handicapped which provided social activities for young adults with disabilities. Eventually she earned her teaching certificate at Arizona State then taught 7th and 8th grade science from 1969 until her retirement in 1988. Barbara loved teaching her students about the scientific method, the wonders of the natural world and the sensibility of using the metric system. In retirement, Barbara focussed on her family, friends and community. Although none of her grandchildren lived near her, she visited them regularly including making eight trips to Australia during the 1990s. She was a big help to her working daughters with young families. She delivered for Meals on Wheels for many years and was always active in her church, The First Congregational Church of Tempe (United Church of Christ) where she had a wonderful group of friends and served on the Board of Missions. In her later years she suffered from dementia and the last 11 years of her life were spent in care, mostly in Barboursville, WV. She was a lover of cats, M*A*S*H*, the movie 'Some Like It Hot' (which could make her laugh uncontrollably) and Mexican food. She disliked making left hand turns, technology, and certain American politicians. Barbara is survived by her four children, Jeff Bedient and Tim Bedient, both of Tempe, Arizona, Nancy Norton (Michael) of Huntington, West Virginia and Emily Bedient Bermingham of Melbourne, Australia; four granddaughters - Emily Norton of Seattle, Washington, Rachael Norton of Chicago, Illinois, Kathryn Bermingham of Adelaide, Australia and Caroline Bermingham of Melbourne, Australia. She is also survived by her brother, Gregory Nelson Stone (Shinny) of Old Mystic, Connecticut. She was preceded in death by her parents, Perry Eben Stone, Sr. and Virginia Webber Stone, her siblings Perry Eben Stone, Jr. and Nancy Stone Kimball and two other dear relatives, her cousin Janice Heffernan Whiting and her aunt Elizabeth Webber Collins Belyea. Her children are grateful to the staff at Wyngate for their excellent care. Her family will gather in Tempe later this year to celebrate her life.