Barbara Jean Floyd

Barbara Jean Freeland Floyd, age 87, of Dallas, Texas, passed away peacefully on May 25, 2026, surrounded by her loving family. Sharla held one hand and Sheryl held the other. We told her that Pap was there and was ready to take her Home.

Barbara was born on August 1, 1938, in Dallas, Texas, to Carl Harmon "Bill" Freeland and Elvira Carter Freeland. She grew up with strong family roots and shared a close bond with her sister, Susan Freeland Lumley, who was twenty years younger. Barbara often felt more like a mother figure, and more than once people mistook Susan for her daughter. Susan lovingly called her "Sister," and still does.

Barbara's life was deeply intertwined with her husband, Charles Mack Floyd. Only five houses separated them from the time they were nine years old. They spent their childhood years side by side, playing in the creek at the end of Wofford Street and included many Monopoly games with Charles and his sister, Carolyn, and the cute little girl down the street, Barbara. Their friendship became a love story. They married on May 3, 1957, building a life centered on loyalty, laughter, and true devotion. Charles was born February 16, 1937, in Naples, Texas, to Charles Olen Floyd and Gena Lucille McCollum Floyd. He passed on June 6, 2020, and Barbara grieved his loss for the final six years of her life, holding him tight in her heart every single day.

Barbara will be remembered for her kindness and her intense, unwavering love of her family. She brought joy and personality into everything she did. She loved crafting, the color red, sugar and anything that sparkled.

In her early years, Barbara and her mother owned and operated a floral shop, where she developed a lifelong love of flowers, especially red roses. She later built a career in the airline industry, working for Muse Air and TranStar before retiring from Southwest Airlines.

She loved to travel, and she and Charles were famous for their spontaneous adventures, including hopping on the last flight to Las Vegas, staying up all night, and returning the next evening. She would frequently travel with her parents in their motorhome taking them all over the United States on motorhome rallies. Once she started working for the airlines, she would hop a plane to Hawaii in a heartbeat and would take anyone who wanted to go along with her. Hawaii held a special place in her heart. Then there were sister trips with Barbara, Susan, Sheryl and Sharla to Lake Tahoe and Santa Fe where Susan had moved once she and her husband had the opportunity to work in New Mexico.

She was an intense Elvis fan and never missed a chance to celebrate the music she loved. In her later years, she was joined by Carolyn, Judy and Sheryl for several road trips to see Elvis impersonators, lovingly called Elvi. A trip was made to Memphis where we toured Graceland, went down Beall Street, Sun Records and a paddleboat ride down the Mississippi River. The paddle boat was down a steep hill and we had no trouble getting her down there in her wheelchair but was fortunate enough for a young Marine to step up and push her back up the hill in her wheelchair. We might still be there if it wasn't for the kindness of that young man. The group also went to Waco for an Elvi convention for three days of Elvis music along with touring Magnolia Market and dining at O'Charley's. Another trip was made to Grapevine to see a different Elvis impersonator. She LOVED Elvis and especially loved Elvis gospel. Her Mom would always sing gospel songs while cooking and cleaning largely due to being the daughter of a Southern Baptist preacher, Barbara's grandfather.

There were many late nights spent playing Pinochle with Judy and Benny Hicks. They would also travel to the horse races in Arkansas with Charles driving and just as everyone went to sleep in the car, he would ease over on the side of the road rattling the car with the bump strips on the side of the road just to get a chuckle or possibly some unkind words.

If there was a party, they would be there. They had so much love to give and in the late 80's they "adopted" another couple of young adults, Sheryl and Jim's best friends, Laurie and James Coldiron. They were included in grand adventures like Super Bowl parties both at the clubhouse where Laurie and James lived and then later on the "Patio" that James and Jim built over the filled in swimming pool. The patio was a place of its own. It was the home of the dead recliner section, the hot tub section where food was placed on the hot tub cover for any assortment of reasons be it Christmas, the aforementioned Super Bowl parties or just gather because family was important, the craft section where many mums and fancy photo albums were made, the dining area where Pinochle and dominoes were played, the sauna/closet storage area, and the work out corner where Barbara, Sheryl, Sharla and Laurie would meet and play Motown CDs on the stereo and work out on the many pieces of work out equipment.

Growing up when Sheryl was in band and Sharla was in drill team, you could always find them on the 50 yard line cheering on their girls. They were always there. Always. Once their grandson, Chace, made it to high school football there was never a Friday night you wouldn't find Pap and Baba sitting in the stands on the 50 yard line right under the press box. That is where another couple were "adopted", Cindy and Bryon Kuykendall. They also came to see their son and sat in the same area where frequent criticism flowed for how the coaches were calling the plays and constantly being second guessed by the 50 yard line crew.

Sometime around fifteen years ago, as a Christmas present, the gift of time was given. Time is one of the greatest gifts meant to be shared. Once a month a party was held at Sheryl's house attended by the parents. It later expanded to include daughters and sons, sisters and brothers, kids of all ages, grandchildren, the siblings, cousins and friends. There was one time there were over fifty in attendance and sometimes only ten, all sharing the gift of time spent with loved ones. There were party themes for St. Patrick's Day - wear green, Mardi Gras - with many beads worn, the infamous Baconator where everyone had to bring a dish that included bacon (no heart attacks fortunately), and a personal favorite, Boo @ Backroads - Halloween, celebrated in full costumes. Cindy and Carolyn took turns being the most creative winning a quart of Apple Pie Moonshine. Thanksgiving meant Pap and Baba would arrive early so Pap could help with mixing the dressing while Baba made her famous, signature dish - Deviled Eggs.

If you knew Barbara and food, you knew that she was an extremely picky eater. Whenever we would go out to eat at any Mexican restaurant, the joke was she would look at the menu and then we would all say "Two beef enchiladas a la carte and a screwdriver with a salted rim". That was standard along with meat and potatoes, Popeye's fried chicken and ANYTHING sweet. We are unsure how she lived so long on a diet of mostly sugar.

Barbara loved to look pretty in her sparkles. Many people have said that she was a beautiful woman. Other than her natural beauty, this was in large part to the talents of Francis, Carol and later Alexis doing her hair every week. The compliments would pour in after she got her hair helmet done and she would have the biggest smile with her blue eyes sparkling mischievously.

I leave you with this. If there ever was the definition of "True Love", it was the love shared by Charles and Barbara. A better example you will never find. The love they had was one of a kind and they truly worshiped the ground each other walked on. If one was down, the other was there to take up the slack. One time Pap broke down on the side of the road while hauling his 36 foot goose neck trailer loaded with tractor and bat wing mower. He called Baba and told her to go get in the wrecker and drive it to where he was. Away she went to rescue her man. They loved deeply. Dementia is a horrid disease. It robbed her of the ability to remember her man had passed. Every day she would ask "Have you seen your Daddy?" She didn't understand why he wasn't there after sharing their lifetime together. It was a joyous day with her passing. She was finally reunited with her one True Love. That's what matters. That's all she wanted.

Barbara is survived by her daughter, Sheryl Floyd Cathey, and her husband, Jim Cathey, and her daughter, Sharla Floyd. She was a proud grandmother to Chace Cathey and his wife Jennifer Cathey, Laura Starbuck and her husband Adam Starbuck, and Heather Kent and her husband Kyle Kent. With the passing of her own mother, Barbara became like a grandmother to her nieces, Haley Lumley Schulz and Holly Lumley Eakins, who were close in age to Chace and held a special place in her heart. All of her grandchildren lovingly knew her as "Baba." The name "Baba" was given to her by her grandson Chace. As a young boy, he would hear Charles call her name, Barbara, and he heard Baba so that is what she became.

She is also survived by her sister, Susan Freeland Lumley, and her husband, John Lumley; their daughters, Haley Lumley Schulz and her husband Bretton, and Holly Lumley Eakins and her husband Drew; and their children, Samson Schulz, Scout Schulz, Hazel Eakins, and Johnny Eakins.

Barbara is also survived by her partners in life, her sister-in-law, Carolyn Floyd White and cousin, Judy Little Hicks.

Her legacy continues through her great grandchildren, Dean Starbuck, Amelia Starbuck, and Lorelei Kent. She also leaves behind her grand dogs, Tater, Dillon and Miky Cathey along with great grand dogs, Remi Cathey, Riggs Cathey, Kaldi Starbuck, Grogu Kent, and Leia Kent, who brought her so much joy.

She was preceded in death by her parents, in-laws, her husband, and her brother-in-law, Bill White.

Visitation will be Friday, May 29, 2026 from 5-7pm at New Hope Funeral Home. A funeral service will be held May 30, 2026, at 1:00pm at New Hope Funeral Home in Sunnyvale, Texas followed by graveside services at Grove Hill Memorial Park in the Garden of Love. In honor of Barbara's love for bold, joyful color, the family kindly asks those attending to wear red. Red roses were her favorite and are especially meaningful.

Barbara/Sister/Mom/Baba will be deeply missed and forever loved. Her spirit, her sparkle, and her love for her family will live on in all who knew her.