Barbara Hannah Chadwick, 90, of Rutherford , passed away on Friday, March 23, 2012, surrounded by her loving family. She was born on April 29, 1921 in Fitchburg , Massachusetts . In 1935, her family moved to Rutherford , NJ and in 1939, she graduated from Rutherford High School . Barbara then became a Registered Nurse when she graduated from the Newton-Wellesley Hospital School of Nursing in Newton , Massachusetts in 1941.

Barbara served as a Rutherford Councilwoman from 1976 until 1978. In 1978, she became the first elected female Mayor of Rutherford in which capacity she served until 1988. She was also a Bergen County Freeholder from 1981 until her retirement in 2001. During her tenure as Freeholder, she primarily concentrated on health and human services, focusing on the children, senior citizens and the disabled. In 2001, the multi-purpose room at the Bergen County Administration Building was named for Barbara H. Chadwick and the plaque on the wall reads: “Wife and mother, human services activist, nurse, civic leader and public official. ‘A tireless advocate for those in need.’” Her legacy of service lives on in the thousands of people she helped over the years.

Barbara was a past president of the Rutherford Woman’s Club, past captain of the Rutherford First-Aid Ambulance Corps, chairwoman of the NJ League of Municipalities and Director Emeritus of the Rutherford Kip Center . She belonged to the Rutherford Republican Club, Rutherford Methodist Church , Rutherford Garden Club, William Carlos Williams Center Board of Directors, St. Mary’s Hospital Board of Directors, NJ Association of Counties, Order of the Eastern Star, Meals on Wheels. She was also a former member of the Union School Parent-Teacher Association as well as a Den Mother for her sons’ Cub Scout troops. Among her many awards were the Rutherford Chamber of Commerce “Man of the Year” in 1974 and the Rutherford High School Distinguished Graduate in 2001.

Barbara is survived by her beloved husband of 67 years, David S. Chadwick; three sons Douglas and wife, Jane; Daniel and wife, Katherine; and Donald; three grandchildren Debra Holman and husband, Robert; David and wife, Jennifer; and Lauren; three great-granddaughters, Madison, Alexis and Mabel Holman; and nephew Thomas Sieg and family. She is predeceased by her father, Thomas E. Hannah; mother, Olive Hannah; and brother, Thomas Hannah, Jr.

The viewing will be held at Collins-Calhoun Funeral Home in Rutherford on Sunday, March 25 from 7-9pm and Monday, March 26 from 2-4pm and 7-9pm. The service will be held at the Rutherford Methodist Church at 56 West Passaic Avenue in Rutherford on Tuesday, March 27 at 10am. For those attending the funeral service for Barbara, her family has asked to assemble in church.
Interment will follow at Hillside Cemetery in Lyndhurst , NJ .

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Rutherford First-Aid Ambulance Corps, P.O. Box 217 , Rutherford , NJ 07070 .