Phyllis Barker

Phyllis Barker, devoted wife of the late Burl Barker, died peacefully on October 17, 2024, in Phoenix, Arizona. Beloved aunt, great-aunt, godmother, and dear friend to many people in both Ohio and Phoenix, Arizona, Phyllis would have been 98 years old on November 1, 2024. Both of her nieces, Dr. Clare Close and Ann Close Sessoms, were with her during her last days. 

Phyllis Nadine (Close) Barker was born on November 1, 1926, in Bucyrus, Ohio, to Charles and Lalah Close. She was raised on the Close family farm in rural Sycamore, Ohio. Phyllis and her brother, Wayne Close, were the fourth generation to be raised on the Close farm. 

Phyllis graduated from Sycamore High School in 1944. She graduated from Heidelberg College in Tiffin, Ohio, in 1948, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education. She began her teaching career that fall, where she met her future husband, Burl Barker. 

Phyllis and Burl were married in 1949 at the Plankton Methodist Church in Plankton, Ohio. They lived in Elmore, Ohio most of their married lives. Early in her career, Phyllis accepted a position at Elmore High School and taught in the business department until her retirement from Woodmore High School. Many of Phyllis’s students still remember her with so much love and respect. That friendship with her former students remained a source of great joy and pride for her until the very end of her life. She could recall so many of them by name.

Phyllis and Burl enjoyed many cross-country road trips together. They both loved driving, believing it to be the best method for touring and seeing the country. They especially liked the desert southwest, and after retirement, would spend winters in the warmer winter climate of the Phoenix, Arizona area. They drove back and forth between Elmore and Phoenix every year. Phyllis was living year around in Phoenix at the time of her death.

  Phyllis was an avid golfer and for some years she coached the Elmore High School boy’s golf team. In 1981, she led that team to the state championship as one of the first women to coach a boys’ team and was, by some accounts, the second woman to coach a team to the state championship.

Phyllis is survived by her two nieces, Ann Close Sessoms, of Nashville, Tennessee, and  Dr. Clare (Elizabeth Stearns) Close, of Henderson, Nevada, and her two nephews, Dr. Daryl (Donna) Close, of Sycamore, Ohio, and Mark (Amanda) Close, of Azalea, Oregon, as well as by three great-nieces, Dr. Meredith Close, of Boston, Massachusetts, Dr. Hilary Close, of Miami, Florida, Marissa Sessoms (Geoffrey) Cover, of New Orleans, Louisiana, and five great-nephews, Jacob Sessoms, of Asheville, North Carolina, Charles (Vickie Lucero) Sessoms, of San Antonio, Texas, Thomas Close, of New York, New York,  Samuel Close, of Bend, Oregon, and William Close, of Corvallis, Oregon, a sister-in-law, Nancy (Barker) Lucante, of  Clarksburg, West Virginia, a goddaughter, Zoe Pearce, of Elmore, Ohio, and a godson, Stephen Pearce, of Fort Collins, Colorado.  

Phyllis was preceded in death by her husband of 63 years, Burl Barker, of Elmore, Ohio, her parents, Charles and Lalah (Armatrout) Close, of Plankton, Ohio, and her brother, Charles Wayne Close, and sister-in-law, Clara (Davis) Close, longtime residents of Grants Pass, Oregon. 

Phyllis leaves a legacy of dedication to and life-long love for building and nurturing friendships. She had friends of all ages, from young parents and their children, all the way to people older than she. Phyllis stayed actively involved with her family and her friends. She will always be remembered with fondness and much love by all who were fortunate enough to know her. 

Phyllis’s family would like to express their deep gratitude to the people who loved and supported Phyllis throughout the last few years. We are grateful for all her many friends, in Elmore and in Phoenix. Her days were brightened by all the cards, phone calls, and visits. A special thank you to the caring staff of doctors and nurses at Mayo Clinic Hospital, many of whom she called her friends.

A memorial service for Phyllis is scheduled for Saturday, May 31, 2025, at 11:00 am, at Woodville United Methodist Church in Woodville, Ohio. The service will be followed by a reception and luncheon in the church’s Fellowship Hall. After the reception, Phyllis’s family and friends will gather on the covered patio at Sugar Creek Golf Course in Elmore.