Barbara May Loudenback

Barbara (Bobby) Loudenback was born Barbara Ori on January 22nd, 1934, to Emmett and Lela Ori in a house at the end of Mission Creek Road, Belfair. Barbara was the oldest of three children, having a younger sister Frankie, and younger brother Emmett Jr., whom we called Pug.

Belfair was a very undeveloped area at that time, with dirt roads all the way to Bremerton. Belfair is where she lived all 90 years, mostly in a log home, built in 1934, less than a quarter of a mile from where she was born. She married John Johnson in 1951; they raised three children Steve, Ron, and Jack.

Sisters Lela and Maxine Heitzman married brothers Emmett and Al Ori. Both families, at that time, lived at the end of Mission Creek Road. The families were very close.

Al and Maxine Ori had two daughters, Pat and Judy, and a son Al Jr., whom we called Woss. Family was very important to Bobby. She had lots of offspring and family members who called her Mom, Mommy, Grandma, Aunt, Aunty, and even Great Grandma!

She graduated from South Kitsap High School in 1951 before North Mason had a High School. At that time students were bussed into Port Orchard from Belfair. The ‘B’ on the buses stood for Belfair; the buses at North Mason to this day have a B before the bus number.

Bobby worked her entire career in the grocery business. Sam Theler sold his grocery store in Belfair to Emmett, her father. That is where her grocery career began, working in the store at a very young age, in the store owned and named “Emmett’s”, after her father. Later it was Popes, and then Uddenberg’s Thriftway where she worked most of her career in the meat department as a meat wrapper.

Bobby loved all of her family. As time went on, family members were located in Oregon and California. She welcomed everyone to her house on Mission Creek. It was a home away from home for many kids and relatives. Her hobbies were gardening, landscaping, cooking, fishing, and traveling. Her faith is Catholic.
On January 26th,1980 Bobby married Norm Loudenback. After retirement they traveled, visiting friends and family. Winters were spent living in Mexico in a motorhome, fishing in the Sea of Cortez. Summers were spent in Belfair fishing, crabbing, and shrimping on the Hood Canal.

Eventually old age took her life. However, for years she fought off Breast Cancer, Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, and pain from a broken neck roughly nine years ago. She was preceded in death by her first husband John, husband Norm, and her son Ron.

This summer, July 26th at 1:00 PM a celebration of life will be held at Rill Chapel in Port Orchard.