On August 22 ^nd , 2022, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, friend, and retired realtor Barbara Ringel passed away.  She was 88.

Barbara Jean Powers (or Barb, as her friends and business associates knew her), was born in Nashville, Arkansas on March 27 ^th , 1934, to Remmel and Veris Powers.  Not long after, the family welcomed her younger brother, Joe.

When she was only six years old, Barb lost her mother, Veris, to cancer.  Because Remmel (whom she referred to her whole life long as "Daddy") had to work at various locations all over the country in order to make ends meet, Barb was raised, in part, by both her grandparents and her aunts.

Eventually, Rem would remarry; Barb and Joe would come to know their stepmother, Vadis, as "Mother," as she then raised the two of them as her own.  Rem and Vadis would then have a son together, named Steven, who, tragically, died in infancy.

At the age of 18, Barb travelled to Austin, Texas, to attend the University of Texas at Austin.

It was there, in the Spring of 1952, that she was introduced, via a "blind date," to a young airman by the name of Walt Ringel, originally from Leavenworth, Kansas.

In a whirlwind romance, Walt and Barb were married on October 10 ^th , 1952, barely six months after they first met.  Together, over the next 62 years, they would settle back in Leavenworth, raise three children, and live an amazing life together.

In April of 1954, they welcomed their first child, son Steve (Steven Walter).  Barb always spoke with pride and love about becoming a mother, beginning with Steve.  He survives his parents, in Leavenworth.

A couple years later, after Walt left the Air Force, he briefly attended the University of Kansas in Lawrence; Barb would recount with great pride how she wrote his first college paper for him, titled, "What a Difference a Day Makes," about having just welcomed their first child…AND how she earned Walt his first "A" in college!

After returning to and settling in Leavenworth, they welcomed their second child, their daughter, Barb (Barbara Kay, or Barbie), in August of 1957.  She, too, survives her parents, in Leavenworth.  Barb was always very serious (and very happy) about how special it was to share a relationship with her one, and only one, daughter.

Not to be outdone, they welcomed their third (and most precocious, according to Barb) child, Mike (Michael Edward), in August of 1960.  Barb never stopped marveling at just how energetic and, again, precocious young Mike was…or how proud she was of his natural talents, which he grew into a successful business.  Mike also survives his parents in Leavenworth.

As many know, Barb went on to launch and enjoy a decades-long, very successful career, selling real estate in the Leavenworth-Lansing Area.  The appeal to her was never the financial success, or all the accolades & awards she received; the appeal to her was that, over her decades in the real estate business, she was able to work with hundreds of people and families in either helping them find their new home (or homes, over the years), or selling their homes, and moving on to new adventures.

Barb earned numerous community-based, industry-based, and sales-based awards throughout her career, as well as the respect, admiration, and camaraderie of her fellow realtors.

Lesser known, perhaps, was how Barb went out of her way throughout her entire adult life to help those around her.  She never knew a stranger, and at every turn, whether in a small way, or sometimes, in a very large way, she would stop at virtually nothing to help people who were less fortunate, or perhaps, were in difficulty…only she never spoke of it…never sought praise for it…but, for decades, simply did whatever she could, whenever she could, to help people.

Of greatest note, of course, was her 62-year-long relationship with her husband, Walt.

When Walt and Barb were married in October of 1952, he was only 20…and she was only 18.  In every conceivable way, Barb never knew life as an adult without Walt.

Throughout their entire life together, the two were inseparable.  Virtually everywhere one went, so did the other; a singular exception, perhaps, would be Walt's fishing trips…as Barb never really fancied herself a "fisherman!"

The history of humanity would be hard-pressed to find two people who were so madly in love with one another for so, so many years.  Even in their 80s, after retirement, Walt and Barb were as crazy about each other as ever; in fact, when asked just the day before she passed whether she missed Walt, she said, "More and more each day."

She lost Walt in September of 2014, when he passed away barely a month before their 62 ^nd wedding anniversary.

Throughout their life together, they were blessed with seven grandchildren, their arrivals spanning three decades; all seven survive their grandmother (affectionately known by them as Babe): Brandon, Matthew, Amanda, Steven, Madeline, Lauren, and Aaron.  Barb was, in her own words, "so tickled" to be a grandmother…though she was never crazy about the fact that she welcomed her first grandchild at the age of (only) 40…a fact she never let anyone forget.  Barb got to see all her grandchildren find life partners, whom she always treated as her own grandchildren.

Barb also loved being a great-grandmother to, as of her passing, NINE great-grandchildren.  When asked how she felt upon the birth of her first great-grandchild, Barb (who never pulled any punches), immediately answered, "Bite your tongue!"  When tragedy struck, and one of her great-grandchildren died in infancy, Barb, as always, was a source of strength, support, and boundless love, helping to guide the family through such a terrible loss.

In her final years, her body began to slow down…but her mind and her personality never did.  Truly herself through the end, she was brilliant, funny (and low-key sassy), kind, and loving.  No matter what health issues she had, when asked how she felt, she always answered, "Oh, pretty good!"

Her passing was peaceful and without pain, surrounded by family.  All three of her children, whom she loved more than anyone, or anything, in the world, were with her.  In the end, she simply fell asleep and was gone.  We should all be so lucky.

She will be keenly missed by all who knew her.

As mentioned previously, in September of 2014, she was preceded in death by her husband of over 60 years, Walter E. Ringel.

She is survived by her children, their families, and countless friends, who will always love her, and will truly be lost without her.

The family will host a Visitation on Monday, August 29 ^th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at Davis Funeral Chapel.  Funeral mass will be on Tuesday, August 30 ^th 10:00 am, at the Church of the Immaculate Conception in North Leavenworth.  Interment will immediately follow at the National Cemetery on the grounds of the VA Medical Center.