Starr A. Barry, artist, spiritual explorer, colleague, friend, beloved mother and grandmother, passed away on April 16, 2022, following a courageous battle with mesothelioma. She was 77 years of age.
She is survived by her children, Sandra L. Staples, Joseph K. Staples and wife, Tia Simon, and Barry C. Staples and partner Lisa Woodman; her grandsons, Richard C. Staples, and Westleigh J. Munroe; stepdaughter, Tracy Rudge and partner, Alan Gilcott; and numerous relatives. Before she passed, Starr wrote that she wanted everyone to know what wonderful friends, relatives, and co-workers she had and that she loved you all very much.
Starr was born in Bath and grew up in Alna. She graduated from Wiscasset High School and went on to obtain a B.S. in business administration from the University of Maine at Augusta. Throughout her professional life, she held several administrative positions. In her final years, she worked as a senior branch office administrator for Edwards Jones Investments, where she achieved limited partner status in recognition of her significant contributions to the company and the community.
Starr’s many hobbies included reading, painting, tinkering on projects around the home and yard, shopping, sightseeing, traveling, and sharing stories with friends and family. In addition to her delightful sense of humor, she will be remembered for her remarkable beauty, strong work ethic, and for being a patient listener.
A celebration of life will be held in her honor from 12 to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 18, at her home located at 2169 Alna Road in Alna.
In lieu of flowers, Starr requested that donations be made to the humane society, your local animal shelter, or local food bank.
On her desk, Starr had posted the following quote: “I honor the place within you where the entire Universe resides; I honor the place within you of love, of light, of truth, of peace; I honor the place within you, where, when you are in that place in you, and I am in that place in me, there is only one of us.”
A definition of namaste from “Polishing the Mirror: How to Live from Your Spiritual Heart,” by Ram Dass, Sept. 1, 2014.
