Patricia Whinnery Barber
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Patricia Whinnery Barber, 92, passed away on December 8, 2022, after a fierce battle against RSV. She was born on January 9, 1930, in Martins Ferry, Ohio, to the late Walter Nathan Whinnery and Deborah Crawford Whinnery. She married her lifelong best friend, John Franklin Barber on October 25, 1947. Pat and Frank celebrated their 75 years together, the Diamond Wedding Anniversary, less than two months ago.
Pat's life of adventure began in her early teens with horseback riding lessons and she became an accomplished equestrian. With her talent and skills, she guided many horses to blue ribbons. Later in retirement, she fulfilled a girlhood dream of owning a horse - in fact, she owned two. These lucky rescues enjoyed many years on the trail with their loving owner. But horseback did not get Pat far enough off the ground. In high school, she started taking flying lessons, in floatplanes no less. She continued lessons and soloed three different airplanes on her sixteenth birthday in Danville, VA. On her seventeenth birthday, she obtained her private pilot license. Her instructor was her future husband, Frank. By 1959 she had earned her commercial pilot license, flight instructor certificate, and multi-engine rating. She was extremely proud of passing on her love of flying to her many students. In 1961 she and Frank discovered a different form of flying. They joined the Tar Heel Soaring Club in Burlington, NC. The Soaring Society of America appointed her its NC governor in 1971. She earned her commercial glider license and glider flight instructor rating, as well as serving the club as a tow pilot. Pat and Frank discovered the Blue Ridge Soaring Society in New Castle, VA, and it became a virtual home away from home.
She also became a licensed agent in aviation insurance, managing her own agency for twenty years. It was during that time she became the first woman ever appointed to the Governor's Aeronautic Council.
The FAA recognized these amazing contributions to aviation by awarding her the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award in 2006. It honors pilots who have completed fifty or more years of accident-free aviation careers, citing their dedicated service, technical expertise, and professionalism. She added the Civil Air Patrol Award in 2015. This honors the civilian volunteers of the CAP who participated between 1941 and 1945. Pat always felt the early years spent with the CAP set the course for much of her adult life in the aviation community.
While there have been many former students who have called her their "airport mom", she also leaves countless cherished memories for her own family; Nancy Barber Olson (husband Stan and their sons Kenneth and Scott) and David Barber (wife Patty and their son Ben). Pat was a long-time member of Pfafftown Christian Church.
A memorial service will be held at Salem Funeral Home, 2951 Reynolda Road, Winston-Salem, NC, on Saturday, December 17, 2022, at 2:00 PM, with visitation following. Condolences may be sent to Frank Barber, c/o Brookdale Assisted Living Center, 2980 Reynolda Road, Winston-Salem, NC 27106. Salem Funeral Home in Winston-Salem, NC is honored to serve the Barber family.