Barbara Jean Westgate (Allen) went to be with her Lord Tuesday night, passing quietly in her sleep at home in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Barbara was born at the Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara, Calif., on April 3, 1937. Her father James R. Allen, born in Missouri and mother Gertrude Allen (DiMentone), born in Taft, Calif., and brothers William Allen and James Allen preceded her in death.

Barbara married Vern (Verlyn) Westgate on June 23, 1954, in Los Angeles, Calif. She grew up in Taft, Calif., and later in Los Angeles where they met. She mothered three children while working in various high-tech positions, including work with Manned Orbiting Lab astronauts for Douglas Aircraft. She and Vern moved to North Idaho in 1977 when they bought the Honda shop in Osburn, Idaho.

After the Silver Valley collapse in 1981, they moved to the Spokane Valley and started over. Barbara did interior design. She was a very talented decorator and gardener and shared her talents with many. In 1987, they moved to Kirkland, Wash., where she did occasional work in high-tech again. After returning to Coeur d’Alene in 1992, she used her decorating talents on a home in downtown Coeur d’Alene and later in their current home. Her love of gardening and decorating were where she spent her outside time. She was stricken with ALS about a year ago and missed her outside work most of all.

Barbara was a loving wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother and all who knew her knew it. She loved those she loved without reservation. Barbara, Vern and daughters traveled to Florida on a field assignment in 1971, she and the girls went to Russia on a cultural exchange in 1973, and she and Vern spent a number of months in Spain on assignment in 1976.

Barbara is survived by: Vern; son Scott Westgate; daughters Debra Sliwa and Cindy Foulk; granddaughters Briana Spencer, Shelby Cook, Jenna Tolerico and Danielle Guyot; grandsons Ryan Millspaugh, Justin Millspaugh, Aaron Westgate, Bailey Westgate and Alex Westgate; great-grandson Talon Tolerico; great-granddaughters Madison and Izabelle Cook.

“Barbara and I were married at 17 and 19 years of age. Our love, friendship, bonds, commitment and dedication to each other increased continually over 55+ years of marriage. Through the good times and bad, we never wavered in being a unified pair in service to each other and a love for Jesus Christ. She is with the Lord she loves and I’ll join her there one day. Our love here on Earth foreshadowed the eternity we’ll spend together with Jesus.” — Vern

A celebration of Barbara’s life was held Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010, at Candlelight Christian Fellowship, 5725 North Pioneer Drive, Coeur d’Alene.