Barbara Wilke, 85 | The Citizen

Barbara Ella (Ware) Wilke was born in Stockdale, Texas on October 16, 1939 to Howard L. and Ina (Smith) Ware. She was the only child of Howard and Ina, but early in her life her cousin Dulce came to live with her family. The two essentially grew up as sisters and that strong bond continued throughout the rest of her life. Through both the Ware and Smith families, she enjoyed a large network of aunts, uncles, and cousins. As the years passed, she kept in close touch with many of those family members through her many return trips to Texas and road trips across the midwest and southeast. Barbara was the Salutatorian of her graduating class at Stockdale High School in 1957. Shortly after graduating she briefly became royalty, crowned as “Queen Melone XIV” of the annual Stockdale Watermelon Jubilee. Following her two-day benevolent reign, she attended Baylor University in Waco, TX and graduated in 1961 with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Office Administration. While at Baylor, she developed a deep appreciation for all things green and gold. Little did she know, that affinity would pay off in just a few short years. Known only to her hometown family as Barbara, she switched to being called “Bee” early in her adult life. Over the years, she eventually tired of writing all those superfluous vowels on the end of her name, and shortened things to simply “B”. B started her professional career with the Social Security Administration in Alexandria, LA. Shortly after arriving in Alexandria, she met the late Lorenz “Larry” Wilke, an officer stationed at nearby England Air Force base. After Larry was discharged from the Air Force in 1963, the two married on October 26 back in Stockdale. Their honeymoon consisted of a cross-country drive from her hometown up to Green Bay, WI where Larry returned to his job with Procter & Gamble. In the next few years they started their family. Both of their sons, first Bart and then Scott, were born and raised in Green Bay. B and her family were actively involved at Highland Crest Baptist Church, where she served as church secretary for nearly 20 years. B’s time in Green Bay resulted in two passions that continued the rest of her life – The Green Bay Packers and Procter & Gamble products. She quickly developed into a Packers fan and became a season ticket holder. She lost count of the number of games she attended at Lambeau over the next 50+ years, and she derived great joy from being able to invite a variety of Packers fans in her vast network of family and friends to join her at the games. As for the second passion, she would not even consider using any household paper products other than Charmin, Bounty, or Puffs. Similar “guardrails” were in place for household cleaning products. All other brands were forbidden. For years, large quantities of Pampers diapers were B’s go-to gift for any baby shower to which she was invited. One of B’s enduring legacies will be her love of sending greeting cards to her friends and family. For years, she seemed to remember everyone’s birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, graduations, etc. and sent cards to commemorate them all. As an added treat, many of those cards also included gift cards to Dairy Queen or Chick-fil-A. She may have single-handedly propped up the greeting card industry for the last two decades. Rumors are now flying about 

the US Postal Service having to reduce staff and raise stamp prices now that she’s no longer making her daily trips to the mailbox. Becoming a grandmother meant it was time for another nickname, and she became “BB” to her grandchildren and their friends. In 2011, BB moved back south, this time to Fayetteville, GA. The move allowed her to be closer to family again. She loved spending time with her grandchildren Anna and Renzy in Fayetteville, and Lily in Denver, CO. She was able to join all three of them for countless birthday parties and tried to attend as many of their school, church, and other activities as possible. She loved watching the three of them grow into adults and pursue their studies, passions, and careers In Fayetteville she found a new church home at Fayetteville First Baptist Church and quickly plugged into several ministries. Over the years, BB was active in her Sunday School class, sang in the senior adult choir, delivered meals to homebound members, and served in Vacation Bible School just to name a few. She also became (possibly) the oldest audio-visual specialist in recorded church history by helping to run the AV systems for the 8:30 a.m. worship service on Sundays over the last few years. B was fully healed and met her Savior the morning of Sunday, May 25, 2025, after a brief battle with cancer. Her family would like to thank the staffs at Ansley Park Health & Rehabilitation and Affinis Hospice for their love and care for her over the last few weeks of her life. B is survived by her sons: Bart Wilke of Denver, CO, and Scott (Kim) Wilke of Fayetteville, GA, her grandchildren: Anna Wilke, Renzy (Julia) Wilke, and Lily Wilke, her sister Dulce (Bill) Brasby of Goose Creek, SC, and her brother-in-law Richard (Marian) Wilke of Sedona, AZ. She was preceded in death by her husband Lorenz “Larry” Wilke, her parents Howard L. and Ina Ware, and her in-laws Lorenz and Kathryn Wilke. A memorial service will be held Friday, June 13, 2025, at 11:00 AM in the Overton Chapel at Fayetteville First Baptist Church, Fayetteville, GA with Pastor Jack Miller officiating. Visitation will be from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM at the church. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in B’s honor to the Homebound Ministry of Fayetteville First Baptist Church.Mowell Funeral Home & Cremation Service, Fayetteville, www.mowells.com