Felicia Parks Barber, 87, of Franklin died December 24, 2023.
Born in Bridgeport, CT, on February 17, 1936, Felicia Bassick Parks’ first home in Fairfield, CT was built in 1775 and was not wired for electricity when they moved in. Her parents were Charles and Lucia Parks.
The eldest of four, Felicia lived most of her childhood in Southport, CT in an historic sea captain’s house across from Mill River at Southport Harbor. Her family spent summers of the mid-1950s vacationing on her father’s boat, the Summer Palace, and in 1957 her family took in a “foster” brother who escaped almost certain death as a soldier in the Hungarian Revolution.
Felicia’s schools were all formative for the person she became: one with a keen intellectual curiosity, and a great love for reading, writing, and language. She was an avid reader, and a talented writer with superlative grammatical skills. The schools she attended included the Pequot School, Westtown (Quaker boarding school; West Chester, PA), and The MacDuffie School (girls boarding school; Springfield, MA). She earned a B.A. in English at her beloved Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, MA, and an M.A. in Reading Education at Boston College. While living in Boston she met her like-minded future husband, Paul Hewes Barber, at the Arlington Street Unitarian Church in Boston.
Felicia had spunk. Before college, she took an extended trip to Europe by herself, staying in hostels and making friends with other youth travelers. She spent one college summer working at Mesa Verde National Park in Colorado, the story here being that she went on vacation with her parents and loved their day trip to Mesa Verde so much that she asked them to leave her there.
A few years after marrying, Felica and Paul moved to Sharon, MA, where they raised two children on picturesque Deborah Sampson Street. In the early years, Felicia volunteered at S.O.S., or Sharon Operation Serve, a non-profit dedicated to supporting at-risk youth. Her children could wake to an at-need youth living in their home for a day or weeks at a time; some became like family. Felicia also enjoyed the social, intellectual, and philosophical atmosphere of the Sharon Unitarian Church. Indeed, the Unitarian Church played a huge role in much of her life.
Felicia was enamored by culture, language, and learning. In her forties she found a career she truly loved: teaching English as a Second Language (ESL). For years she taught multi-cultural students from whom she learned much in return. She was a well-loved and highly animated teacher at Stonehill College, Brockton Adult Education, Holyoke Community College, and other educational institutions.
In 1989 Felicia and Paul moved to Amherst, less than a mile from her sister’s home. Felicia was happiest here, where their house sat at the base of a forested hill overlooking a valley. She was very involved with the Amherst Unitarian Church, where she made many good friends. After Paul died in 1998, Felicia moved to a small house near Amherst center. Later, she and her sister both moved to independent living apartments at Applewood in Amherst. The last five years she lived near her children in assisted living at Forge Hill in Franklin, MA, while keeping the close relationship she had with her sister, who moved there as well.
A few trips were life highlights for Felicia, including Puerto Rico, St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Colorado, Machu Pichu in Peru, the Galapagos Islands, Alaska, Portugal, and Scotland.
Family was of supreme importance. In the early years, holidays and vacations with extended family were particularly special. Felicia’s children feel lucky to have spent numerous weekends and short vacations with her before she moved to Franklin. Best of all was Felicia’s beaming face when her children and grandchildren arrived for a visit.
No description of Felicia sans cats would be complete. She loved all animals, but it was cats, cats, cats, and she dearly loved many throughout her life. Barney, Daisy, Saffron, Rover, Chester, Dexter, Dandelion, Priscilla, Jenney and Lucy are just some she would want named. Perhaps Felicia is best remembered contentedly reclined on a couch, book in hand, and with a warm cat in her lap.
Felica was pre-deceased by her husband, Paul Hewes Barber of Amherst.
She leaves behind her son Jeremy Barber of South Easton, MA, his wife Laura, and their children Kaylee and Nick.
She also leaves her daughter Jocelyn Bates of Franklin, MA, her husband Tom, and their daughter Sydney.
Felicia is survived by her three siblings: Courtney Gordon of Franklin, MA; Justin Parks of Norwalk, CT, and his significant other Cynthia Cahill; and David Parks of Falls Village, CT and his wife Jean. She is also survived by her foster brother, Imre Kohut, his wife Rosemarie, and their children Kathy, Nicole, and Imre, Jr.
A much beloved cousin, Winifred Friedman of Sarasota, FL, her husband Bob, and their son Kent Friedman survive Felicia.
Felicia was pre-deceased by her sister-in-law Jane Gagnon and her husband Raul, and by her brother-in-law Kurtiss Gordon.
Nieces and nephews surviving Felicia include Geoffrey Gordon, Sara Adair, Cynthia da Cruz, Elizabeth Parks, William Parks, Elizabeth Spears, Robert Gagnon, Bonnie Wiggins, William Gagnon, and Charlotte Gagnon. She was pre-deceased by her nephew Stephen Gagnon.
Numerous great-nieces and great-nephews survive Felicia.
Felicia would want her family and friends to know she loved them all.
Arrangements are under the care of the Ginley Funeral Home of Franklin (www.ginleyfuneralhomes.com).