Monday, April 30, 2007

In the beginning...

Hello and welcome to the Barr Family Blog. We are five adult siblings who currently live in five different states throughout the great USA. We think this blog will be an easy and fun way for all of us to stay in better touch with each other. Distance can sometimes make it difficult to keep up with all the activities in each family. Through this blog, we can let each other know what is going on in our lives and the lives of our individual families.

So, let's start with a little history. We'll briefly go back in time and turn back the calendar to the early years. Take a look at the photo above - that's our parents, Stanley and Rosemary Barr.

They were born in 1917 - only one day apart - in Detroit MI. They were raised there and most likely this is where the photo was taken. Stan and Ro, as they were affectionately known to family and friends, met in school and married in 1940. They had five children between the years 1941 and 1957. Four of us were born in Detroit. In the fifties we moved to Shreveport LA where our youngest sibling was born.

Rosemary passed away in 1975 and Stan passed away three years later in 1978. Our youngest sibling was 18 years old when our Mom died.

Where have we all scattered? Tom has lived in Tulsa OK for decades. Jerry has called Brighton CO his home for many years. Chris has lived in Plano TX so long that she has seen this once small community grow to a population of well over 200,000. Peggy resides in Winston-Salem and has loved this NC city for more than 20 years. John remains a loyal resident of Shreveport - his birth home. Among the five of us we have 11 children; two of us are grandparents.

Now, here we are ... almost thirty years have passed since our remaining parent, our Dad, died. Happily we still manage to keep in touch and get together from time to time. We hope this family blog will be an easy and fun way for all of us to chronicle our stories and stay in touch with each other frequently.

So, here's to Stan and Rosemary Barr. Dad and Mom, you left a legacy of five children who continue to love, care and respect each other deeply - who are still a tight knit clan - who laugh together and comfort each other during the sad times. We are brothers and sisters who define the meaning of family. We are the Barrs'.