Barbara Payne Obituary

BARBARA BABCOCK PAYNE
ITHACA - Barbara Babcock Payne, died January 19, at Kendal at Ithaca. She was born in Ithaca, NY, on July 12, 1918 to Howard Edward and Hilda Butler Babcock. When she was four years old, her family moved to the Sunnygables dairy farm, which was recently Turback's Restaurant. She attended East Hill Grade School, Ithaca High School, and graduated from Cornell University. She was predeceased by her parents; her beloved son, Edward Babcock Hirshfeld; and her brother, Howard Edward Babcock Jr.
Mrs. Payne was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Cornell University. She studied one year at the Yale School of Nursing, and then married John Winslow Hirshfeld in 1941. They settled in Ithaca, where both had grown up, and where Dr. Hirshfeld set up a surgical practice that is currently Surgical Associates of Ithaca.
Dr Hirshfeld and Mrs. Payne were divorced in 1970. In 1974 she married Frances Dana Payne and moved to Richmond, VA. Both her husbands are deceased.
Mrs. Payne worked from 1964-74 at the College of Arts and Sciences at Cornell University as Assistant Dean in charge of Academic Advising. After moving to Richmond, she worked as a fundraiser for Saint Paul's College, an historically black Episcopal college.
Mrs. Payne was active in volunteer work in Ithaca, having served on many hospital-interested committees, as an early councilor of Suicide Prevention, and as President of the Friends of the Library. In Richmond, VA, she was president of Gateway Homes of Greater Richmond, an organization which provided a home and a caring program for recovering schizophrenics.
In 1986 she moved to Swarthmore PA. While there, she studied Horticulture at Longwood Gardens and worked as a volunteer gardener at the Scott Arboretum, the grounds of Swarthmore College. She was Treasurer and Vestryman at Trinity Episcopal Church in Swarthmore,
Mrs. Payne moved to Kendal at Ithaca in January, l996, its opening month. She was elected to the first Residents' Council at Kendal and served 3 years. She also served on its Horticultural/Grounds Committee and wrote for the Kendal newsletter, The Breeze. She sat on two committees at the Cornell Plantions, and has been a Board Member of the Ithaca Child Care Center.
Mrs. Payne's greatest pleasures were her children and the outdoors, where she enjoyed hiking, gardening and swimming with her family and friends. Her greatest adventures were, at age l5, a canoe trip around Cayuga Lake with Camp Comstock Girl Scouts; in 1960 a 12,000 mile, 8 week largely camping trip across the USA with her four children; and in 1977 hiking to Bright Angel Creek at the bottom of the Grand Canyon, and up. (No burros!) Her only regret is that life holds more blessings than time to enjoy them.
Mrs. Payne is survived by her brother, John B. Babcock of Ithaca; and by her children, John W. Hirshfeld, Jr. of Swarthmore, PA, Lucy Griffin of Fairfax County, VA, and Mary Floyd Hirshfeld of Ithaca. She leaves eight grandchildren, Meridith, Alexander and Margaret Hirshfeld of Chicago; Trevor Griffin and Miranda Kolodzinski of Fairfax VA, Catherine Crouch of Swarthmore, PA, Amy Schultz of Seattle WA, and Mary Ann Watt, of Concord, NH; and great-grandchildren, Timothy and Amy Crouch of Swarthmore, PA, Kaitlyn and Tyler Watt of Concord, NH, and Lydia Schultz of Seattle, WA.
A funeral service will be held at St. John's Episcopal Church on Tuesday, January 22 at 2:00 p.m. A memorial gathering will also be held at Kendal at a date yet to be determined. In lieu of flowers, well-wishers are encouraged to direct contributions to a charity of their choice. Arrangements are by the E.C. Wagner Funeral Home of Ithaca. www.ecwagnerfuneralhome.com