I have so many foind memoires of Barbara.  Her parties were so creative as she made the decorations, the costumes and her creative side was unique.  I attended her toga party with white toga sheets, grapes, and lots of photos!  She had parties for her beloved cat Raskol with cakes stacked with wet cat food mountains, and fountains flowing!  I used to play tennis with her at the tennis courts near Maplewood Park.  I cross country skiied with her at Webster Park.  I just enjoyed visiting her as she played wonderful music by Linda Ronstadt, and her friends and parties were beyond compare.  She had an infectious laugh, brilliant wit, seductive smile, and she was a socialist all the way, and fought for civil rights.  I think she would have been a Bernie Sanders fan today.  Barbara Preston will be in my heart and soul for the rest of my days here on earth.  She was a woman of the earth, loved nature and explored the beauty of many lands with a wonderful photographer's eye on the splendor of life.  I am richer to have known her as her friends were lucky to experience Barbara Preston's being.  She was larger than life, yet very humble, beautiful inside and outside.  She will live with me forever.  I love and miss my gentle friend, Barbara Preston.  

Just want you to know, Barb, that I think of you every day, as my black kitty, Raskol P(Preston) Gordon, is alive and well, as rascally as ever.  The bag from Seattle you gave me is getting pretty raggedy, but I still use it almost daily.  Miss you so much - your intelligence, curiosity, creativity, kindness, fun-loving spirit and, of course, your passion for social justice.

Love you and miss you.

Marlene

Brab used to dress her cat Raskol (short for Raskolnikov (from the character in Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment) in all sorts of outfits, just as she used to like to wear costumes. I'm not sure Raskol enjoyed it as much as Barb did. But we still have all of Raskol's outifts, and sometimes we dress up Scratchy (a stray that adopted us a few years ago). Scratchy is no more enthused about clothing than Raskol was, but it's the least they can do for all the room and board we provide.

My sister took this photo of Barbara in East Lansing at my parents' house in July 2007. I wasn't there at the time. I'd asked Barbara if she could look in on my parents during her time in southeast MI for the family reunion, as I was concerned about how they were doing. (Elderly; medical problems starting to accumulate.) She went out of her way to do so. That is what she was like: no matter how much she was contending with, she always was able to empathize with others and to extend herself.