Barbara G. DeVyldere
August 22, 1939 – October 14, 2024

Barbara G. DeVyldere, 85, of Salem passed away of pneumonia on Monday, October 14, 2024. In her last days she was surrounded by family.

She was born in Detroit, Michigan to Anthony and Lillian (Domony) Bylo, Barbara attended school in Michigan and later the family moved to Phoenix, Arizona.

Barbara was interested in getting out in nature, so she joined the Girl Scouts, an unusual choice for a city girl in the 1950s. Her experiences hiking and camping with friends began a lifelong love of outdoor adventure.

She later graduated from high school in Phoenix. After graduating, she attended Whittier College, an all girls school in California. She met Bob DeVyldere, then a student at Cal Poly Technic Pomona, at a dance. Bob asked her to dance, and she later said she didn’t want to be rude so she said yes. That was it for both of them. Family often marveled at how well-matched they were, especially in their love of the outdoors. After marrying in 1959, they had their first child Tony in 1960. At ages 21 and 22, with no family support and carrying an eight month old baby, the couple bought and moved to a 400 acre ranch in Selma, Oregon.

After moving to Oregon, Bob worked for the Forest Service and was in the Army Reserve one weekend per month while Barbara kept up the ranch. Their second child Suzy was born in 1963. Ever resourceful, Barbara turned the bed of the pickup she was driving into a playpen for her two small children during haying season. With all their other commitments, the huge ranch became too much to handle, so the young couple sold the land and bought a fixer-upper house in town. Barbara talked the men at the local building supply into telling her step-by-step how to repair and rewire the house while Bob was away fighting fires.

But ranching was always their dream. Finally in 1964, the couple purchased a 50-acre ranch on Dick George Road outside of Cave Junction where they lived for over thirty years. Their third child Bob was born in 1965. Together the family raised cattle and sheep. Barbara tended a large garden and canned and froze much of their food. She also sewed many of the family’s clothes. They went to the larger town of Grants Pass once a month to shop. Summers, Barbara and her children would work on the ranch in the morning and swim in the Illinois River every afternoon.

In 1967, through the influence of friends, Barbara became a follower of Jesus. She was quickly joined by her husband and children. The family studied the Bible every morning and gave away New Testaments to people they met. This began Barbara’s life-long love of Bible study.

During that time, prompted by prayer, Barbara went back to school to become a teacher. This meant driving to Southern Oregon College in Ashland and back daily, a commute of an hour and a half one way. One day her vehicle broke down on the way to school. Never one to miss a day of class, Barbara hitched a ride to college, went to her classes, and then dealt with the broken down car on her way home. She graduated with a bachelors degree in elementary education in 1970.
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Barb taught fourth and sixth grades at Evergreen Elementary and Lorna Byrne Middle Schools in Cave Junction for 26 years, retiring in 1996.

After retiring, Bob and Barbara bought 180 acres on the Calapooia River in Crawfordsville to be nearer to their children and grandchildren. They built a house and repaired the barn and fences. There, they lived and raised cattle. The DeVylderes were very involved in Family Bible Fellowship in Brownsville, serving in the nursery, scheduling volunteers, cleaning the building, and organizing potlucks.

Ever the educator, Barbara hosted her grandchildren monthly at the ranch to enjoy a living history class. The older grandchildren have happy memories of dressing up in costumes grandma created and making foods and crafts from the period they were studying.

Later, Barbara also instituted Cousin Camp, where groups of grandchildren would stay and work on the ranch for a week at a time, swimming in the Calapooia River in the afternoons.

Barbara never outgrew her love of camping and adventure. For many years the DeVyldere multi-family camping trip was the height of the summer. In her later years she traveled extensively, sometimes taking children and grandchildren with her. Barbara was an avid quilter, loving the contrast of colors, the more dramatic the better. She made as many as three or four quilts a piece for her children and nineteen grandchildren. She also knitted her own sweaters and taught several grandchildren how to sew.

After 45 years of marriage, Bob passed way in December of 2004. Barbara continued running the ranch with family help until she was 83. During these ears, she loved serving at Brownsville Community Church. Barb also attended women’s Bible study at the Crawfordsville Community Church and visited and traveled with her many friends. After selling the ranch, Barbara moved to Capitol Manor in Salem, where she lived from 2022-2024.

She is survived by her sister Louise Bylo of Portland. She is also survived by her children Tony and Leah DeVyldere of Tangent, Suzy LaFrance of Hillsboro, and Bob and Brenda DeVyldere of Salem, 19 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Barbara is preceded in death by parents Anthony and Lillian Bylo, and her husband Bob (2004).

A Celebration of Life Memorial service will be held at 2PM on Friday, November
29th, at Central Valley Assembly of God 657 American Dr., Halsey, OR 97348. Private burial took place at Finley Cemetery in Crawfordsville. Sweet Home Funeral Chapel is handling arrangements. www.sweethomefuneral.com