HOUSTON —
Tommie Nell Wyble Barfield, 76, passed away on August 16, 2012.
Funeral Service: 10 a.m., Tuesday, August 21 at First Baptist Church of Euless.Interment will be 2:30, Tuesday at DFW National Cemetery.
The family will receive visitors from 6 to 8 p.m., Monday at Lucas Funeral Home, Hurst.
Tommie was born on November 18, 1935 in Port Arthur, Texas. After graduation from Thomas Jefferson High School, when other girls her age were choosing marriage and families, Tommie preferred adventure and the allure of a career in the big city. After training at Baptist Hospital in Beaumont, she moved to Houston to work in the x-ray department at Methodist Hospital. There she had an opportunity to work with the world famous heart surgeon, Dr. Michael DeBakey and Denton Cooley. But even that wasn't enough adventure for Tommie. In 1960, she became a flight attendant for American Airlines, and based in Chicago and Dallas, she saw not only this country, but foreign lands as well. She even met a few movie stars along the way. Then in Dallas, she found the love of her life, Gilbert Barfield, while attending Park Cities Baptist Church and decided it was time for a new adventure. They married in 1962 and settled down in Bedford, Texas to raise their two children. Over the course of their 50 years together, Tommie's greatest joy was her role as wife, mother, and “Nonnie” to her four beloved grandchildren. She continued to enjoy travels with Gil, her children, parents, and siblings. Her giggle was infectious. She was always quick to see the humor in anything and would laugh until she cried. Everything was fun when Tommie was around. Her love of life came not only from the love she felt for everyone around her, but also from the deep abiding faith she had in her God and Savior. She was truly “a light unto the world” in every way. She was preceded in death by her parents Clara and Russell Wyble and her sister-in-law Betty Wyble. She will always be lovingly remembered by those whose lives she touched—her adoring husband Gilbert, daughter Tessa and husband Carter Kolodny, son Eric and wife Kyoko Barfield, grandchildren Asher Kolodny, Madeleine Kolodny, Kevin Barfield, and Nile Barfield, sisters Winnie and husband Bob Osborne and Kitty and husband Dick Lindley, brothers Mike Wyble and wife Melinda, and Pat Wyble. She will be sorely missed by nieces, nephews, cousins, and scores of family and friends to numerous to count. We were all blessed to have the gift of her in our lives.
