Born on May 31, 1949, in Manhattan, New York, Barbara passed away at home
in Hampton, VA with her loving family by her side. She was preceded in death
by her mother, Lorraine (Flanagan) Oswald. She is survived by her husband of
49 years, LCDR Jon Cotters; loving Cocker Spaniel, Matty; her father, LT COL
Philip Oswald; brother, Thomas Oswald; sisters, Linda (Oswald) Smith and
husband, SSGT Dallas, Susan (Oswald) Shubert and husband Mark, and Lori
(Oswald) Janousek and husband, Dr. John. An Accountant, tax expert, homemaker
and self-taught website/graphics designer, she was known to never miss a
family or friend’s special occasion without designing a beautifully themed
graphic on Facebook. She also constructed a number of websites for national
dog breeders and exhibitors. During her career, Barbara frequently served as a
small business accountant, tax school instructor, a volunteer tax preparer for
Air Force and Navy members, an H&R Block office manager, and retail store
assistant manager.
Taking after her mother, she had a talent for the creative hobbies of
ceramics, cross stitching and macramé. An active duty military wife for 26
years, Barbara followed her husband to numerous duty stations across America
and endured frequent extended separations of up to six months at a time
without complaint. She loved to travel and visited all 50 states and nine
foreign countries. From 1977 to 1980 she accompanied her husband to Saudi
Arabia while he worked for Lockheed Aircraft Co. Her accounting experience
resulted in her becoming the Army Corps of Engineers Riyadh Military Exchange
Assistant Manager in a matter of days. She was also the H&R Block
Assistant Manager for the island of Guam.
She will be sorely missed by all that knew her and were touched by her
generosity and simple grace.
The family will receive friends 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM, Monday, April 13, 2020
at Parklawn-Wood Funeral home, 2551 N. Armistead Ave., Hampton, VA 23666. A
private graveside service will be held at Parklawn Memorial Park.
Friends are encouraged to visit www.parklawn-woodfh.com to share memories
and offer words of condolence with the family.
