1958-2025
Barbara Beasley Boyd, 78, of Rison, was a child at heart who loved owls and digging in the dirt, either for dinosaur bones or artifacts.
She passed away Tuesday, April 29, 2025, at home.
Barbara was born September 24, 1946, at the Pine Bluff Arsenal, daughter of Neel Byron Beasley and Margaret Mary Renz Beasley.
She attended the Annunciation Academy before graduating from Pine Bluff High School. Barbara attended the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
Barbara was a loving homemaker who passed on her dark humor to her children, who had so many funny stories that they could write a book. She was a breast cancer survivor who never let her 2023 diagnosis affect her positive outlook on life or her sense of humor. Barbara loved to travel and see new places. She never met a stranger she could not talk to and enjoyed calling the Hogs, even in LSU territory.
She was a fixture with the Cleveland County Election Commission, working the polls every year for many years.
Barbara was a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church, where she volunteered for their spaghetti supper for decades. She also volunteered for Neighbor to Neighbor.
Along with her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, William James Boyd; brother, Tom Beasley; and sister, Linda Hall.
Survivors include four children, Deborah Cochran (Walter) of Rison, David Boyd of Rison, Audrey Stain (Mitch) of Grapevine and Karen Boyd (Elton) of North Little Rock; siblings, Edward Beasley (Sandra), Cecelia Summers and Stephen Beasley (Jennifer); sister-in-law, Diana Beasley; grandchildren, Brett White (Jena), J McDaniel, Michael Boyd and Caleb Boyd; three great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be 10:00 a.m., Monday, May 5, 2025, at St. Joseph Catholic Church with Father Joseph Marconi officiating. Burial will follow in Graceland Cemetery. A Vigil service will be Sunday evening at 5:30 p.m. at Robinson’s.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Neighbor to Neighbor, 1419 Pine Street, Pine Bluff, AR 71601.
