Barbara Ann Gillam Fetterhoff, 91, of Solomons, Md died at Asbury Solomons Health Care Center on Wednesday, November 11, 2020. The family wishes to thank the entire team at Asbury Solomons, A Homemade Plan, and Calvert Hospice, who cared for Barbara during her last year with breast cancer and heart issues.
She was born in 1929 in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, daughter of Neal and Helen Olson Gillam. She graduated from Haverford High School, in Havertown, PA, from Taylor Business School in Philadelphia, and the University of Delaware with a B.A.
She was predeceased by her parents, sisters Dorothy and Carolyn, husband Ira, and son Hans. She is survived by her daughter Margaret, nephews Andrew and John, and nieces Anne and Beverly.
She worked as a university, medical, and church secretary, including at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Prince Frederick 1991-97. Her husband, Ira, an Episcopal priest, was a psychiatrist in Western Maryland for 25 years. They retired to Calvert County in 1990, and both were active in Middleham and St. Peter’s Parish in Lusby-Solomons. They moved to Asbury Solomons Retirement Community in 2005, and Ira died in 2011. In 1981 Gov. Hughes appointed her to the Advisory Committee on Reapportionment and Redistricting, and then she served on the state election board 1983-97. She was on the Committee for Save the Maryland Theater in Hagerstown 1986-89, and was Chair of the Commission for Women in Washington County, having helped get it organized.
She was a member and leader in Maryland for over 60 years in American Association of University Women (AAUW), most recently president of the Patuxent River Branch. Under her leadership, the Dare to Dream Grant Fund was established to help local women with personal growth and education efforts. The Barbara Fetterhoff Honorary Fund supported the AAUW Conference for College Women Student Leaders in 2011, 2012, and 2013.
She was a past president or co-president of the League of Women Voters in Washington County, and three terms in Calvert County. She was also a member of the Calvert Artists’ Guild and the Concerned Black Women. She was named a Peace Builder in 2014 by the CC Community Mediation Center, and has been honored in several Women of the World (WOW) events by the League, the Commission for Women, and AAUW. She also helped with Reach for Recovery for many years, visiting breast cancer patients in Calvert Co.
One of the awards she received noted that she had “always been involved with community service and outreach no matter where she lived. She was a dedicated volunteer, and Maryland benefited from her many hours of selfless service.”
Services will be private. Arrangements by Rausch Funeral Home, Lusby, MD. Memorial contributions may be made to Middleham and St. Peter’s Parish, P.O. Box 277, Lusby, Md 20657. To leave condolences, visit www.rauschfuneralhomes.com.
