Our beloved Mineral resident and friend, Barbara Jackson passed away on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, after a 2-1/2 week stay in the hospital and hospice.

Tuesday, May 13, 2025

Dear friends and family,

We have sad news. Barbara passed away this morning. In the end she was peaceful and surrounded by comfort and love. She is now relieved of much suffering that was ahead. 

In the last 48-hours long-time friends, family, and Murphy were present with music, food and support to celebrate her on Mother’s Day and express gratitude and memories of everything that will become her living memory and legacy.

All of your amazing support, energy and message have gotten through. Friends and family were able to visit her each day more than once in the weeks before she passed. She shared with her nurses that she was being checked on often by friends and family. The team at UCSF, Sutter, and Hospice CHH were truly world class, attending to her throughout each day and making quick adjustments to alleviate any concerning symptoms. We feel strongly that the quality of time and care with loved ones and gifted health professionals was a tremendous blessing.

Each day Barbara spoke about the unique, special and kind community back home. Supporting her wish for independence until nearly the last weeks of her life was an achievement made possible by an extraordinary community. We are so grateful for the mutual aid and care provided from each of you all over the years and last months.

It’s clear that quality of life at its peak for Barbara meant living among friends in nature who notice if your wood pile isn't covered at the start of a storm or come by to rake the pine needles from the yard ahead of fire season without asking. Mineral, its nature and people is a beautiful, safe, and awe inspiring place. Our family is so appreciative of the opportunity to have gotten to know the place and community over the years. It brought her so much joy to live until the very end of her life with people and a natural environment she loved and cared for deeply. 

Over the last three weeks, some of her care team grew up in Northern California in places like Redding, Magalia or had spent time at Lassen Park. Everyone was inspired by her remarkable life and career. Ultimately Barbara’s legacy outside of family and friendship, is decades of service to the National Parks system. She interpreted the natural world for people of all ages, walks of life and backgrounds to help people build a relationship that is reciprocal with nature and provide a greater appreciation of what is precious and worth supporting and respecting. 

She passed this onto everyone her life touched. Shaun shares this appreciation and attunement to the extraordinary environment that surrounds us with Leon and I daily. It’s a beautiful way to move through life and we are grateful to Barbara for this gift. 

The messages from everyone by text, here, and through voice messages brought Barbara and us much comfort these last difficult weeks. We are so grateful for your outpouring of love and support. 

We are sending love to everyone as you are processing this difficult loss alongside us. 

We will provide updates on any future celebrations and memorials as soon as plans come together. 

All our love.

To read more posts from Shaun (Barbara's Son) and Angela (Barbara's Daughter-in-Law), visit Barbara's Caring Bridge page.