Obituary of Barbara Elizabeth King

Barbara King November 21, 1925 – September 27, 2016 Oroville Barbara King, homemaker, business woman, gardener, and farmer, died peacefully at home on Tuesday evening, September 27, 2016, at the age of 90. She is survived by her son, Albert M. King, Jr., (Bert) his wife Bonnie, and their four children, Jennifer Pfeiffer and her husband Scott, and their children, Grace, Stella and Paige; Stephanie Greco and her husband Joe, and their children, Vincent and Maggie; Albert King III and his wife, Lindsey and their son, Henry; and Christian King. Barbara is also survived by her daughter, Deborah King, and her husband, Eric Gignoux; as well as Caroline Murad, who came to live with Barbara and Bert when she was a child and was raised alongside Albert and Deborah. Barbara’s husband, Albert M. King (Bert), predeceased Barbara in 1983. After ten years as a widow, she and Rudy Marcozzi, a widower, became close friends and confidants; sadly, Rudy predeceased her in 2015. Born in Oakland, California, to Desmond and Elizabeth (Bessie) Kiernan, Barbara’s two brothers, Donald and Desmond (Babe) both predeceased her. She moved to Berry Creek, California with her family while in high school, then went to work as a paralegal for Bert King, an attorney in Oroville and a California legislator, whom she soon married. After their wedding, Barbara and Bert moved into their first home on Bird Street where their two children were born. They moved to Canyon Highlands in 1950, where they lived until they built their retirement home on Circle Drive in 1973, where Barbara lived and tended to her neighboring orange groves for the rest of her life. Barbara’s talents bloomed along with the orange blossoms. A real country girl, she loved the orange groves and looked at her trees often with Caroline, who returned to Oroville to retire and, like Barbara, lived on Circle Drive and also raised oranges. Long a dedicated gardener with a prolific vegetable garden that kept her family fed, Barbara became an enthusiastic keeper of the orange groves. And as anyone who ever at a meal at her home knows, Barbara was a superb cook. Her Thanksgiving dinner was the gold standard of holiday meals, and she was famous for her homemade pies, jellies and jams, made from the fruit she grew and harvested. The secret to her fig and apricot jam, has, sadly, died with her. Once her children were in school, Barbara’s business acumen kicked in. She designed and built the King Building on Oro Dam Boulevard in 1966, and kept charge of the office building until very recently. An astute businesswoman, she was far ahead of her time as a female entrepreneur. She opened a Shaw’s Confections in the King Building that was an immensely popular old-fashioned ice cream parlor and candy store. She also managed her husband’s law office as well as acted as the probate clerk for the firm. All this while being a true homemaker in the oldest sense of the word: still ironing her sheets and pillow cases right up until the end. They don’t make them that way anymore and Barbara will be truly missed by family and friends alike! Services will be held on Sunday, October 2, 2016, at the Ramsey Funeral Home, 1175 Robinson Street, in Oroville, with visitation from 5 – 6 p.m. and recitation of the rosary from 6 – 7 p.m. For information, call 530 534 3877. The Funeral Mass will be held at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church at 1330 Bird Street in Oroville on Monday, October 3, 2016, at 11 a.m. with graveside committal following at Oroville Cemetery. There will be a reception after the Mass in the garden behind the church. Arrangements are entrusted to Ramsey Funeral Home 530-534-3877.