My aunt, Barbara Ann Holt, died from cancer in July. She was 70. Her next birthday would have been this month.
When I was a young child, I used to love going to a cookout with my aunt. We ate a lot of hot dogs and chicken that was on the grill. Then after the family eats, we will play football and basketball. We would be at the cookout all day long. I miss a lot of things we used to do.
One thing I used to like was that I went to the same high school that my aunt went to. It was Ballou High School over in Southeast where I used to live. I would ride my 10-speed bike over her house and into Maryland, Oxon Hill. I loved playing with my cousin. She raised four children by herself. One thing I used to do was mess with her about her football team, the “dead skins.” She was very mad about it and then would talk about my team. I will miss her very much.
We also used to watch scary movies. And sometimes, I would spend the night over at her home and sometimes for the whole weekend. I haven’t seen her for about 20 years because I was out of town and she moved out to Clinton, Maryland. She enjoyed playing NFL Fantasy Football and doing puzzles. She was a very happy person and that’s why she was my favorite aunt, and her children were my favorite cousins.
To honor her life, here’s an excerpt from the obituary our family published with the funeral home:
“Barbara was born on September 16, 1950, in Pomfret, Maryland. She was educated at Charles County Public Schools and graduated from Frank W. Ballou High School. Barbara moved to Washington, D.C., where she worked for 38 years in the federal government. She started her federal career at the Navy Annex as a File Clerk. She later gained employment at the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). At the FTC, Barbara worked as a secretary and as a human resources specialist. She retired from the Federal Trade Commission in 2008 as the assistant director for operations in the Human Resources Office.
Barbara continued her work in the Human Resources field as an independent contractor. She work with several federal government agencies, including the Department of Tr a n s p o r t a t i o n , Federal Motor Carriers Administration, the Selective Service System, the Department of Energy and the Department of the Air Force.
Barbara grew up in the Catholic Church. Later in life, she became a faithful member of New Fellowship Baptist Church and then joined and currently is a member of the Community of Hope AME church family. Barbara enjoyed spending time with her family and spoiling her grandchildren and great grandchildren. She was an avid football fan and a Redskins fan for over 50 years. She enjoyed going to the games, both home and away. Barbara enjoyed reading, doing crossword puzzles and playing games on her iPad. She also enjoyed playing fantasy football, survivor, and other NFL games.”
Friends and family held a memorial service for Barbara Ann (Smoot) Holt on Aug. 9. You can read her full obituary from Thorton Funeral Home at tinyurl.com/BarbaraHoltObit.
