Barbara Elsa Hines Obituary
Barbara Elsa Hines, 67, left this world peacefully after a brief time under home hospice care at her home, May 20, 2023, in Downingtown, PA.
She was the partner of Keith Millington also of Downingtown, a constant in her life for over 20 years. She was previously married to and divorced from Barry Hines with whom she had a son Daniel.
Born in Weinheim, Germany June 26, 1955, she was the daughter of the late Francesco Donato Corbo and Irma Jungmann Corbo.
When she was young, she moved often; she was an "Army Brat" from 1955 until 1962 when her father died serving his country in Korea. She had lived in places from Michigan to Texas to Mississippi and finally Germany where she learned to speak German which allowed her to form a lifelong connection with her German aunt Lina. She and her family had moved to Coatesville when they received news of her father's passing. She grew up in the Coatesville and Downingtown/Johnstown area surrounded by aunts and uncles, cousins and friends. She and her cousins were as close as siblings and the friends she had made growing up at Roymar Hall in Coatesville were still her friends these many years later.
Barbara graduated from Coatesville Area Senior High school and attended Vocational Technical school for art and design and was a member of DECA.
After high school some of the jobs where she was employed was at the Piercing Pagoda as the manager and in the office of Hayes Real Estate. It was here that Barbara found a house for herself and Barry on Hibernia Road and made it her home.
Barbara was an essential employee at all job opportunities she encountered over her many years working. From early years at the Exton mall to the farmers market to the last position she held as office manager for Ben Valocchi, CPA where she worked for over 15 years. Barbara was his go to, right hand and girl Friday. Each position she held was an experience to thrive and bring innovative ideas to the table and she did property management, bookkeeping, payroll and tax preparation for Ben. She was so well loved by Ben, his wife Shelly, his family, Katie and Jake and indeed all eleven of Ben Valocchi siblings that she was "adopted" by the Valocchi clan. Every year after tax season, Ben would close the CPA office and rent a house for two weeks at the shore in Ocean City, NJ and he and his family would always invite Barb to join them.
She loved people and especially kids. She had an amazing ability to connect with people, young and old, from all walks of life and could relate to them on so many levels. Barbara had a vivacious personality and consistently made people around her laugh, feel at ease and accepted; she brought calmness and peace to so many lives. Everyone she met was a friend and she genuinely wanted to know how they were doing. There was no such person as an acquaintance, everyone was touched by her kindness, and remembered her even after a short chat.
She was like a Pied Piper with kids – it wasn't unusual to see Barb surrounded by kids or climbing a tree with them and then hanging upside-down with them. She had a child-like curiosity and innocence that drew them to her.
She was a member of the Harvest Worship Center in Downingtown. She was a woman of strong faith; it allowed her to endure and recover from two bouts of stage four lymphoma with endless rounds of chemotherapy, radiation and a stem cell transplant procedure. Her faith also allowed her to forgive people when they took advantage of her boundless generosity.
Barbara was a generous person – she donated to charities too numerous to list here and opened her home to those that needed refuge. Barbara was one to not shy away from volunteering. She would be present where she would be most needed and useful. One favorite of hers was Brandywine Hospital where she volunteered her time with Physical Therapy patients.
Barb had a passion and eye for detail in numerous aspects of her life from her unique fashion sense, her exquisite flower gardens, her charcoal drawings, her amazing talent with crafts and knitting that she would give as personal gifts, her own impressionist paintings and landscapes to her flair for decorating and remodeling; she always had a vision. She never lived in a space, room, or house where she didn't leave her personal, imaginative and creative touch. She loved to change decorations to suit the season and she especially loved to decorate for Christmas.
Barbara had a love for music (the walls of her duplex home in Downingtown were thin and when she heard her neighbor singing, she would sing right along with her), karaoke singing, having gatherings at her home, especially picnics, pool parties and Christmas parties.
Summer was her favorite season. Any time she was near water she was happy - the beach was her tranquil place.
She loved movies, especially comedies and romcoms.
Barbara's had a love for animals. All kinds were taken under her wing and made part of the family, from little mice she'd saved, a pet rat, a stray kitten, a feathered friend, (a cockatoo, Murray bird), a ferret, Moses, her sweet cat Austin, to beloved dogs Kelly, Ben, Mindy (I'm sure they are all walking alongside her right now) and sidekick Maggie, her "Velcro dog" that she left behind.
She is survived by a son, Daniel, Owen Martin Hines of Downingtown; sisters Madlin Rampulla of Ephrata, PA; Sue Koch of Quarryville, PA and brothers Gilbert Clites, Larry Clites and William Clites.
She was preceded in death by her sister Maria Albright of Downingtown. She had many nephews, nieces and great nephews and great nieces, cousins, that she spent a huge part in their lives and many memories were made. Family was so important to her, she followed and delighted in all their accomplishments and was there for them in good times and bad.
Barbara/Barb/Barbie/Babel/Babs was an extraordinary woman and will be greatly missed by all those she touched in this life.
In memory of Barb if you would like to wear an animal print or her favorite zebra print, we know she would have loved that …. Funeral services will be held on Saturday, June 10, 2023, at 11 AM at the Wilde funeral home in Parkesburg, PA with visitation starting at 10 AM until the time of service. Interment will be private at the convenience of the family.
A live stream will be provided on the day of the service for those not able to attend in person. Please check back to this page for a hyperlink on the day of the service.
In Lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to the following charities. The American Heart Association at http://www.heart.org the American Cancer Association at Donate Today | The American Cancer Society (https://donate.cancer.org) or the ASPCA at Memorial Gifts | ASPCA.
