Barbara Burns Melton

Barbara Burns Morris Melton of Lonoke, Arkansas died on August 14, 2023. Barbara was born on April 17, 1931 to Benton Burns Morris and Marguerite Leeth Morris, of England Arkansas. Barbara graduated from Gulfport Preparatory School in 1949, and attended the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, earning a degree from UALR in 1977.

She was active in her community, serving as a Girl Scout leader and on the Ouachita Girl Scout Council. Barbara and others founded the Lonoke Scholarship Foundation, where she served as its first president, remaining on the board until 2017. Barbara was an avid and wide-ranging reader, a member of the Lonoke Book Club, and a volunteer teacher for the Lonoke Literacy Council. Barbara served on the board of CareLink, which connects elder clients with helpful resources. She was a trustee for the Lonoke First United Methodist Church.

An avid golfer, Barbara scored seven holes-in-one, playing the game well into her 80s. She served as a volunteer in many golf tournaments, including the US Open in Pinehurst, NC. On family vacations she enjoyed golfing with her husband, Joe, sons-in-law, and grandchildren. She always played by the rules, although allowing the family a bit of leeway. Her entire immediate family gathered in Arkansas for her ninetieth birthday, a fun-filled, wonderful weekend.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Joseph Philip Melton, Jr, and sister, Eleanor Morris Gann. She is survived by her three daughters, Belinda Downing, Jody Mincey, and Karen Dunne; six grandchildren, Ben, Adam and Cody Cantrell, Patrick and Drew Mincey and Sean Dunne and six great grandchildren. It was Barbara’s wish that donations in her memory go to the Lonoke Scholarship Fund c/o First State Bank (101 South Center Street, Lonoke, AR 72086) or the First United Methodist Church in Lonoke, AR (220 South Center Street, Lonoke, AR 72086).