Barbara Gardyne Offerdahl, née Barbara Kathleen Gardyne, 81, originally of Long Branch, passed away peacefully at her retirement home in Springfield, Virginia, holding the hand of her husband Tom and surrounded by family.
Barbara was born June 25, 1940 in Long Branch at the then-Monmouth Memorial Hospital to her parents Lilyan and Adrian “Gus” Gardyne. She would return to Monmouth Memorial for two years of polio treatment, missing her kindergarten year of school.
She graduated from Long Branch High School in 1958. A lifelong pianist and lover of classical music, Barbara always regretted passing up a scholarship to The Julliard School and a chance at a career in music, but she went on to earn an associate degree in business from Rider College.
She married Thomas George Offerdahl, then of Fargo, North Dakota, in 1961, and they were blessed with two children, Margaret “Peggy” and Thomas “Tom.” Barbara loved to travel and always relished her years living in Italy as a newlywed and later in Germany with her family.
Her most treasured titles came from a life dedicated to family: daughter, niece, cousin, wife, Mom and “MomMom,” the name bestowed by her beloved grandchildren. Barbara deeply loved the Jersey Shore, the town of Little Silver and all the surrounding water. She and her husband were longtime members of the Church of the Nativity in Fair Haven before moving to Virginia.
Barbara was predeceased by her parents Lilyan and Adrian Gardyne. She is survived by her beloved husband Tom and her two children, Peggy Lloyd and her husband Robert of Herndon, Virginia, and Tom Offerdahl and his wife Habone of Montclair, Virginia; and six grandchildren, Jack, Grace, Peter, Chloe, Sohane and Anthony.
A funeral Mass will be held at noon Feb. 12 at St. Veronica Catholic Church in Chantilly, Virginia, followed by internment at Woodburn Cemetery Columbarium in Oceanport at a later date.
The article originally appeared in the February 10 – 16, 2022 print edition of The Two River Times.
