Barbara Goodrich, age 92, of Sac City, Iowa, passed away on Sunday, July 30, 2017, at Park View Rehabilitation Center in Sac City. Barbara Jane Dunlap was born December 17, 1924, in Indianapolis, IN, the daughter of Lionel H. and Ethel (Tully) Dunlap. Her mother was a silent motion picture actress in the 1916 era and posed as a model for the famous World War I Red Cross posters of artist James Montgomery Flagg. Her father was a base commander in the Air Force so Barbara’s childhood was one of frequent moves, never having a home town. You know it wasn’t a typical childhood when her favorite pets were two monkeys she had while they were stationed in the Philippines.
In 1942, her father moved Barbara and her mother to the Davis–Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, AZ, where Barbara graduated from nearby St. Joseph’s Academy in May. After graduation she worked for Western Union in Tucson. She was a bright and beautiful young woman. She met our father, Ellis A. Goodrich, a dashing young officer in the Air Force at a USO dance. They quickly fell head over heels in love. After a war-time whirl wind romance they were married May 8, 1943, at the Presidio in San Francisco, CA. When the war was over, the couple lived in Iowa their entire married life, raising their family in Sac City.
Barbara was a loving wife and devoted mother and grandmother. An only child, she wanted a family, the bigger the better, and cherished her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Family vacations were spent camping at various parks and campgrounds in Iowa and visiting family. She enjoyed playing cards with her card club and always had a good time with her bowling team, especially at the state tournaments. She was an avid reader and passed her love for books to her two daughters and Scott. Ron inherited his Dad’s love for the 2016 World Series Champion Chicago Cubs and for the Iowa Hawkeyes. Another love of Barbara’s was Frank Sinatra. When she was a junior in high school in Coronado, CA, she skipped school with her friend Hilda and rode a ferry across the San Diego Bay to the Hotel Del Coronado where they heard Frank Sinatra singing with the Tommy Dorsey band. Barbara was hooked and became Frank’s greatest fan!
Left to cherish her memory are her family: sons Ron (LaVon) Goodrich of Des Moines, IA and Scott Goodrich of Omaha, NE; daughters Candi (Daryl) Calkins of Chadron, NE and Gail (Dave) Huser of Waverly, IA; grandchildren Ryan (Jayme) Goodrich of Des Moines, IA, Kyle (Traci Wolfe) Goodrich of Des Moines, IA, Jennifer (Bobby) Capalbo of Fairfield, CT, Travis Calkins of Cape Girardeau, MO, Eric (Autumn) Calkins of Chadron, NE, Adam Kimball of Cedar Falls, IA, Holly Huser of Savannah, GA, and Jillian Huser of Waverly, IA; great-grandchildren Jacob, Drew, and Brooke Goodrich, Cameron, Ellie, and Matthew Capalbo, and Abby, Tucker, and Gracie Calkins; brother-in-law Don Goodrich of Jefferson, IA and sister-in-law Audrey Goodrich of Columbus, MO; and many nieces, nephews and great nieces and nephews.
Barbara was preceded in death by her husband Ellis and her parents.
