Barbara ‘Bobbi’ Anne Makous

Makous, Barbara Anne (Duggins) ‘Bobbi’ Rochester: June 12, 2010, from ovarian cancer. Predeceased by her mother, Ruth (Varker) Todd, and sister, Brenda Hoilman. Survived by her loving and beloved husband, Walter; sons, Randy (Dana) Everhart of Murphy, NC, and Rocky (Vicky) Everhart of Lexington, NC; step sons James (Elizabeth) Makous of Los Angeles, CA, and Matthew Makous of Seattle, WA; step daughter Ann (Jerry) Makous; grandchildren, Ashley Kopp, Allison, Heather, and Eric Everhart; step grandchildren Crystal and Luke Makous; brothers, John (Essie) Duggins of Lexington, NC, and Raymond (Teresa) Duggins of Winston-Salem, NC; sister, Bonnie (Duggins) Hackett of Winston-Salem, NC; surrogate daughter, Kathleen (Paul) Hayden of Rochester, NY, and surrogate grandchildren, Matthew, Rachael, Christopher, and Rebecca Rapoza; and many dear friends, especially Sue Matthews, of Greenville, SC. Barbara, known to all as Bobbi, modeled petites for E. J. Korvette in NYC as a young woman, then was a co-owner of the Holly House restaurant in Winston-Salem, and finally ended up working in interior design and property management in Winston-Salem, while she also formed her own businesses as caterer, painting contractor (employing only women), and proprietor of a cafe serving lunch and snacks. In a year of women-only stock car racing, she won all her races, driving the same car that won the Daytona 500 and Charlotte 500 that year; she piloted her own plane, and met her husband hang-gliding at Kitty Hawk, NC, in 1981. She then moved to Rochester, NY, and turned to gourmet cooking and other domesticities, although until recently she and her husband rode some 1000 mi per summer on their tandem mountain bike. Bobbi was loving and compassionate, caring for a neighbor through four months of terminal illness, for example, simply because there was no one else to do it, moving out of state to do the same for her mother-in-law, and helping troubled children. She did what she could, for whom she could, wherever she could. To children, she was a magnet; even those who were complete strangers would approach her in public places and hug her. She was generous in thought and deed: generous with her time, generous with her effort, generous with her possessions, and generous with her love. She was beloved by all who knew her, and her passing impoverishes us all. Friends may call Tuesday, 4-7 P.M. at Vay-Schleich & Meeson Funeral Home, Greece Chapel, 1075 Long Pond Road. Her Funeral Service will be held following visitation, 7 P.M. in the Funeral Home Chapel. Interment in Lexington, North Carolina to be held privately. In lieu of sending flowers, please consider sending a tax deductible contribution toward the Walt and Bobbi Makous Prize, which will recognize the most outstanding undergraduate engaged in vision research each year at the University of Rochester. Please make your check payable to the University of Rochester, with ‘Walt and Bobbi Makous Prize’ written on the memo line. Checks can be sent to David Williams, Center for Visual Science, Box 270270, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627.