

While Barbara will be deeply missed, she would want us to celebrate her life and the contribution she was to everyone she met. She was an angel on this earth making time to support whomever she encountered. Please feel free to add your memories and comments here.
Obituary
Barbara Bach died peacefully in her sleep at the age of 94 on December 3, 2024. She was born in Washington, DC on February 27, 1930 to Clarence Elgin Werback and Margaret Virginia Matthias Werback. She lived in the DC area for almost 65 years. She moved to New England to be near her daughter and grandchildren and lived in the area for over 25 years. She is predeceased by her brothers, William and Elgin Werback, her beloved niece, Kelly Pooler, and her son, Mark Moran. She has two surviving sisters in the DC area, Rosalie Reidy and Margaret Pezeshki. Her daughter and son in law, Timi and Jeff McGary, live in McLean, VA, and her daughter and son in law, Tammy and Philip Parks live in Amherst, MA, with whom she lived for the last 15 years of her life. She has many family members still living in the DC area, including her nephews, William Bortz and Jonah Pezeshki, and her niece, Krista Werback. and four grandsons living in New England, Noah Sax, and Zachary, Matthew, and William Parks.
She was a friend of Bill’s and acted as sponsor to many people. She was a proud Democrat and Unitarian. During her long career, she worked at the African American Institute in DC in the 1950’s and was a civil rights champion throughout her life. She also worked for several years as a drug and alcohol counselor helping youth get treatment rather than jail time, and worked in the prison system with hardened criminals, finding a way to connect and support their rehabilitation. Later, she was a real estate agent in Florida and a children’s theater office manager in Maryland. She played tennis semi-professionally and acted as a tournament official.
Barbara was a social butterfly and had many friends from all walks of life. She was vivacious and fun and was always the one planning trips to the beach, visits to friends across the US, bridge club parties, and more. She loved art, design, architecture, gardens and craft shops. She lived in Exeter England for a few years and loved traveling around Europe. She was a snappy dresser and was known for taking creative risks, like asymmetrical haircuts and beetle green nail polish. Later in life, she loved to go to lunch with family and friends and was always on the hunt for good pistachio ice cream. She is missed every day by her daughters, Timi and Tammy.
Art, Stories, Notes, et cetera
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I’m so sorry for your loss ,Tammy .
Barb was a dear, close friend to our mother, Anne W. Cooley (who lived from 1925-2010). They had many adventures together, especially when they both lived and worked in the DC area during the 1970s-1990s. They played a lot of tennis together in the large tennis group they were members of and which was mostly for singles or divorcees in the DC/MD/VA area. For several years (over 15 at least) members of the group performed original tennis musicals that Anne Cooley wrote and that were performed at the group’s annual banquet. The musicals involved plots that revolved around romance on and off the tennis court, with lyrics to other well-known songs changed and adapted to fit the story. Year after year Barb assisted by being the word prompter for the many rehearsals. She knew how to gracefully prompt or correct people during the rehearsals if they flubbed their lines. :) Barb and Anne took a number of trips together as well. They had a long friendship. The last birthday party Anne Cooley attended before her death in 2010 was Barb’s 80th in Rockville, Md.
I was lucky enough to visit her in Amherst several years back. I was amazed how she could navigate her apartment and her beloved dog, despite poor eyesight.
She will be sorely missed. She was a force for good in the world.
Rest easy, Barb. I'll see you again on our next turn around this crazy world. You are loved.




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