02/19/2024
My mom lived a very productive 93 years...
She left us Wednesday 2-7...
Barbara Ann Meeker (nee Miller) was born in 1930 in Peru, Indiana. She received her Bachelor of Arts from DePauw University in 1952. She then taught art in Hammond Public Schools until 1957. In 1958, she and her husband Bill founded B & B Design so she could continue her love of art by teaching and painting while raising her young family. She joined the Purdue faculty on the Calumet campus in 1966 where she taught in the Construction Technology Department for 20 years. She brought the Very Special Arts Program to the Northwest Indiana, which involved giving children with special needs access to the arts through adaptive materials, tools, and processes. Barbara's artwork reflects the things she loved and the landscapes that surrounded her. She enjoyed traveling to study with various watercolor artists. She later developed her skills in abstract realism. Her painting “Lily” was chosen as the National Easter Seal in 1993. She was the recipient of many other honors and accolades over the course of her career. She found ways to use her art to benefit her surrounding community, sponsoring an annual scholarship for high school students, donating proceeds from her sales to Hospice Artisans and many other charity involvements. She developed a love of jewelry making and displayed and sold her artwork and jewelry at the Center for Performing Arts with her final career retrospective taking place there in 2020. She was a lifetime member of South Shore Arts, a member of the Woodmar Methodist Church Choir, Tri-Kappa, Maxinkuckee Yacht Club, Antiquarian Society, and numerous other art organizations.
She was preceded in death by William F Meeker. She is survived by her son: Steve (Dee) Meeker; their children: Steve (Carly) and Adam (Kalene) Meeker; son: David (Connie); their children: Alyssa (Mark) Burkhart, Katrina (Brian) Kawczynski and Jennifer Meeker; extended family: Jon (Lea) Funston, Terryn (Steve) Lindemann, Carly (Nathan) Calaway, and a multitude of great grandchildren; very special friends: Ruthie Burns, Mario Garcia, and many others.
Memorial service will be held Friday March 1, 2024 at 10:30 am at Woodmar Methodist Church in Hammond. Private burial at Chapel Lawn Memorial Gardens.
Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice Artisans/Hospice of the Calumet Area, Woodmar Methodist Church, or South Shore Arts Every Kid Program. Please leave condolences at www.burnskish.com.
