Dr. Barbara Attebery Scott passed away peacefully at home with family by her side on June 25, 2021.

Barbara was born on December 6, 1929 at Hillsboro Hospital, and was one of twin girls born to Mr. and Mrs Homer Attebery. She and her twin, Catherine, had an older sister Mary Ellen. Barbara grew up on a farm outside Hillsboro in Montgomery County, IL.   She was born into a family where education was highly valued for both boys and girls, along with the strong belief that hard work was a blessing. Barbara and her sisters attended Auburn school, a one-room schoolhouse built on land donated by her father; and she and her sisters graduated from Hillsboro High School. She was 16 years old as a freshman at the University of Illinois.

Barbara graduated from the University of Illinois with a bachelor degree in General Home Economics. After graduation, she served as a Home Advisor in the U of I Extension Service in White and Kankakee counties.

She married John T. Scott Jr. in 1953. John went into the Army and was stationed at Fort Lee, VA for officer's training school, where their first son, John R., was born. John was later stationed in France and Barbara sailed the Atlantic with their one-year old son on the USS United States to join John in Europe for two years.

After returning from Europe, Barbara and John farmed on his parents land in Ford County, IL and later moved to Ottawa, IL where John worked in the State Extension Service. Their second child, a daughter, Anne M. was born while in Ottawa.

Barbara and John returned to school for their PhDs at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa. Their third child, a son, Carl A., was born as Barbara was completing her Masters and PhD degrees. Barbara earned and was awarded the first Doctor of Philosophy in the field of Child Development, Marriage, and Family Relationships at Iowa State University in 1967.

Barbara and John settled with their children in Champaign, IL in 1965. Barbara worked for 12 years as a school psychologist in several Illinois counties at all grade levels, while John worked as a Professor at the U of I in Agricultural Economics. Barbara was also a teacher at Iowa State U., U of I, San Francisco State U., Parkland College, and at a private pre-school. She later earned her Realtor License and sold homes in Champaign for many years.   Barbara was elected to the Champaign County Board. In her retirement she managed her Montgomery County farmland and was a volunteer driver for an interfaith group providing transportation on call to local hospitals, Family Services, and the Cancer Society well into her 80's.

Barbara was a member of the NAACP and involved in civil rights issues including being stopped by the sheriff's department in Mississippi after dark, when on a ride-along as a passenger in a car owned by a local family of color. She took her children to church at St Lukes to experience the music and the choir of Willie Summerville on several occasions.

Her husband, parents, and her two sisters preceded Barbara in death. Her children survive her: John R. and his wife Molly Fay; Anne and her husband Loarn Robertson; and Carl A. She also had 9 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren with another on the way! She also had seven nephews, three nieces, and numerous grandnephews and grandnieces who she all loved dearly.

Funeral Services for Barbara will be at Wesley United Methodist Church, 1203 W. Green St., Urbana, IL at 1pm on Friday, July 2, 2021. Her wake will be on Thursday evening, July 1, 2021, from 6-8pm at Baier Family Funeral Services at 406 E. Pells Street in Paxton, IL. A reception with viewing will precede the service at the church. Burial Services will immediately follow at Glen Cemetery in Paxton, IL.