Barbara Ruth Barnes

</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Barbara Ruth Barnes, 73, of 1308 Walnut St., Eldorado, died 11:13 p.m. Monday, March 16, 2009, at Memorial Hospital of Carbondale.

Services will be held 11 a.m. Friday, March 20, 2009, at Watson Funeral Home in Eldorado with the Rev. Art Watson officiating. Burial will be in Sunset Lawn Cemetery. Visitation is 4 to 8 p.m. Thursday, March 19, 2009, at the funeral home.

She was born Jan. 7, 1936, in the Brownfield community of Pope County to Walter and Edith (Fulgham) Elam.

She worked for the state in mental health. She attended Union Grove Baptist Church and was a member of the Eldorado Garden Study Club, Red Hat Society and Home Extension Club.

She is survived by a daughter, Angela Doerge of Eldorado; and three grandchildren, Raegan Brown, Nigel Doerge and Jessi Doerge.

She was preceded in death by a son John "Jay" R. Barnes; two brothers, Russell Elam and Ronnie Elam; and three sisters, LaVerne Kingston, Dorothy Elam and Joanne Price.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at the Internet site www.watsonfuneralhome.net.