Barbara L. “Barb” Gollnow, 62, town of Pella, Shawano County, the sister of an Amherst woman, died Saturday, March 2, 2013, near Elizabethtown, Ky., as the result of injuries suffered in an automobile accident while traveling with her family. Her husband, James Gollnow, one daughter, Sereena Gollnow, and two foster children, Gabriel Zumigand and Soledad “Gracie” Smith, also died in the accident.
A combined memorial service will be held for her, her husband and her daughter at 3 p.m. Saturday, March 9, in the Marion Elementary School Gymnasium, with the Rev. Paul Feider officiating.
Visitation will be at the Marion Elementary School Gymnasium from 1 p.m. Saturday, March 9, until the service.
A memorial fund is being established for the Gollnows at the Fox Communities Credit Union in Clintonville.
The Eberhardt-Stevenson Funeral Home & Crematory in Marion is assisting the family with arrangements. Condolences may be offered online at www.eberhardtstevenson.com.
Mrs. Gollnow was born March 31, 1950, in Clintonville, a daughter of the late Donald T. and Shirley (Krueger) Smith. She grew up in Bear Creek where she attended school.
She was married to James Gollnow on Aug. 10, 1990, at the United Methodist Church in Clintonville.
The couple lived in various places, including Florida and Tennessee, before moving back to the Pella area in 2008.
She had been a cook for various local restaurants and supper clubs and together with her husband, Jim, ran J & B Fabrication in Thornton and later Tilleda until they sold the business in the late 1990s.
She and her family were members of St. John Episcopal Church in New London, where she was actively involved.
Her main passion was taking care of foster children for the past 14 years.
Survivors include her children, Melissa “Lisa” (John) Taylor, Etowah, Tenn., and Christopher (Bronwyn) Young, Woodstock, Vt.; three sisters, Kathy (Betty) Schumacher, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Joan (Eugene Jr.) Uhl, Amherst, and Patricia (Vernon) Pelkey, Marion; two brothers, Jeff Smith, Clintonville, and Michael (Sharon) Smith, Madison; nine grandchildren; three stepchildren; and foster children.
She was also preceded in death by one sister, Holly Smith; one brother, David Smith, and one nephew, Sgt. Eugene Uhl III.
