In Memory

Barbara Townley (Maher) - Class Of 1967

Barbara Townley (Maher)

Barbara (Townley) Maher

Sept. 1949 - July 7, 2018

Mrs. Barbara Maher passed away at her home in Princeton, OR on July 7, 2018 at the age of 68, surrounded by her family.

Barbara is survived by her husband of 46 years, Joe Maher; her daughters, Michelle Martinez (Hector) and Megan Brassine (Rusty); five grandchildren; Xavier, Addilyn, Timothy and Anthony Martinez and Quinn Brassine. She was preceded in death by her parents, Daniel and Violet (Milligan) Townley, and her brother, Terry Townley.

Barbara was born in September of 1949 in the Weiser, ID hospital. She lived with her family on a ranch in Jordan Valley, OR until the age of three. In 1952, they moved to the ranch on Bully Creek in Vale, OR where she later attended school and graduated from High School in 1967. During that time she was the Vale Rodeo Queen in 1966 and the Caldwell Night Rodeo Queen in 1967. She continued to live at home while she attended Treasure Valley Community College in Ontario, OR, and graduated with an Associate’s degree in 1969. While there, she helped start the college’s first rodeo team. She then transferred to Oregon State University where she graduated in 1971 with a Bachelor of Arts degree. While there she again helped establish a college rodeo team, and was the Miss Rodeo Oregon 1st Runner-up in 1970. While at TVCC, she began dating Joe Maher and they married on December 19, 1971 in Vale, OR. They moved to Star, ID, where Barbara began working for the Boise Interagency Fire Dispatch and attended the College of Idaho during the summers to earn her Master’s degree, which she completed in 1974. They then moved to Jordan Valley, OR where she taught high school English and coached volleyball from 1974-1980. She put her teaching career on hold to have their first daughter, Michelle in 1981 and then Megan in 1984. They ranched

in Princeton, Jordan Valley, and Diamond, OR during the girls’ early years. Around this time she won the Elden Catterson Memorial mixed team roping in Burns, OR in 1980, and the Mary Maher Memorial mixed team roping in Jordan Valley, OR in 1983.

She also won the women’s team branding in Jordan Valley, OR in 1988. They moved to McDermitt, NV in 1987 where she worked on the ranch and as a substitute teacher. In 1994, they moved to Crane, OR where she taught English, Yearbook and Journalism until her retirement in June 2018. She also coached high school volleyball from 1994 - 2001. She earned numerous distinction awards for the yearbook, and she was honored as the Harney County Teacher of the Year in 2010.

Upon her retirement, she received numerous calls, cards and visitors sharing messages of appreciation for the tremendous impact she had on their lives, for standing up for them when they were in need, for the countless extra hours worked ensuring that no one got left behind, for the excellent job she did preparing them for college and beyond, and for doing it all with compassion and class.



 
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08/11/18 09:43 AM #1    

Jim Kopp (1967)

She was my classmate, but also a friend, in 4-H early and all through school.  I caught up with her again when our Cove team, coached by the brother of the Crane team, travelled to Crane to play football and later basketball.  Her daughter was a star player on the girl's basketball team as I recall and I was amazed at the resemblence of her to her mother at the same age.  

I recently lost my wife (April) also after 46 years of marriage, and I share in your grief for the loss of someone so very dear.  I pray that God will give you all sorts of good memories to ease your pain at her loss.  She was a very wonderful person--all her life.

Jim Kopp,  VHS Class of '67


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