Naidene Elaine Barnett

Naidene "Dee" Elaine Barnett was born January 4, 1939, in Dayton, Washington, to Flora Irene and Bill (William) Barlow, joining an older brother, Ernest Leroy, nine years her senior. The family soon moved to Walla Walla, where she lived until 1958. In 1942, her parents bought two acres and an old two-story farmhouse that had been a nursing home for about $1,500. During World War II, her mother planted a "Victory Garden" of one full acre of vegetables, and the family could hardly give enough away. Her father and a friend owned and ran an appliance repair shop for several years.

As a child, Dee attended Grace Methodist Church in Walla Walla with her beloved grandmother, Lorissa, and loved the Bible stories in Sunday School and the old hymns. She later attended First Christian Church, where she first accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior and was baptized. She attended Berney Grade School for seven years, then College Place Public School for eighth grade (she was disappointed when her father bought her a calf and a pig instead of the promised horse!), and graduated from Walla Walla High School (WA-HI) in 1957.

Dee married right after graduation and divorced a little over a year later. She moved with her parents and her son, Gordon, to Santa Cruz, California, where she trained as a dental assistant for an orthodontist. In 1959, she married Dale Clarke and moved to Kennewick, Washington, where her son Terry was born in 1960. They were married for 21 years. She worked as a dental assistant for several years, spent two years at Eastgate School in the Kennewick Public School District organizing a "Career Interest" program for middle school students, and worked as a church secretary at Columbia Community Church (now C3). In 1981, she began work at Battelle as an Administrative Assistant and retired in 2001 after 21 years.

In 1982, she met the love of her life, Alan Barnett, and they were married on February 12, 1983. At his insistence, she immediately joined the Chancel Choir at Central United Protestant Church, where she sang from 1984, including 21 years in the annual "Messiah." With the choir, she traveled to England, Scotland, Wales, New York City, Washington, D.C., Hungary, Austria, Liechtenstein, and Bern, Switzerland. She led and attended several Bible study groups, and in 2002, she and Alan started Martha's Cupboard, a community outreach ministry at Central that still serves the community. They retired from it in 2012. She and Alan also traveled widely on their own; one of their favorite trips was six weeks in Fiji, New Zealand, Australia, and Hawaii in 1992. In 2019, Alan and Dee moved to Tyler, Texas. In December of that same year, Dee lost her beloved husband, Alan.

Dee loved quilting and sewing and made quilts and other special items for family, friends, and many people in need through local and foreign community services. She also had a talent for drawing, with her main interest in people. Though there were some difficult times, her life was full and blessed. At the top of her list was family and the grandchildren, including the great-grandchildren, and she cherished each stage of their growth. Woven through all the years was her faith in the Lord; she recommitted her life in the early 1970s, a turbulent time, and found that He walked by her side no matter the situation. There has been joy in the journey.

Dee is survived by her son, Terry Clarke; grandchildren (children of Terry): Jesse Carson, Jeremey Clarke and his wife, Courtney (child: Tannin Clarke), and Lyndsay Clarke and her partner, Sam; stepdaughter, Elizabeth (Beth); and son-in-law, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan Webb.

Grandchildren (children of Beth and Jonathan Webb) include Jacob Webb and his partner, Kylie (children: Harleigh, Saxon, and Stevie Webb); Sarah (Webb) Russell and Grant Russell (children: Matthias, Elijah, Nehemiah, and Natalie Russell); Hannah (Webb) Murphy and Ian Murphy (children: Moriah, Reuel, and Eoin Murphy); Rebekah (Webb) Kauffman and Malachi Kauffman (children: Elizabeth and Contentment Kauffman); Isaac Webb and Allison (Schultz) Webb (children: Olivia, Hazel, Elliott, and Ellowyn Webb); Benjamin Webb and Abigail (Beggs) Webb (children: Tabitha, Adelaide, and Wesley Webb); Samuel Webb and Gracie (Tillery) Webb; Micah Webb and Rachel (Flanders) Webb; Nathan Webb and Leah (Mason) Webb (child: Maggie Webb); and Lydia Webb, Susanna Webb, and Elijah Webb.

She is also survived by her stepdaughter, Natalie Stamenov (grandchildren Jen and Kallista Stamenov); grandchild, Curtis Clarke and his partner, Ashley Munger; and great-grandchildren: Steven Clarke, Matthew Clarke, Tyler Clarke/Munger, and Brooklyn Elizabeth Clarke/Munger.

Dee was preceded in death by her husband, Alan L. Barnett (2019); her son, Gordon Ray Clarke (2004); her parents, Bill and Flora; and her brother, Ernest Leroy Barlow (2006).

A Celebration of Life will be held 10:00 am, Saturday, October 31, 2026 at Marvin Methodist Church, 300 W Erwin St, Tyler, TX 75702.

Contributions may be made to a charity of choice. (Dee's 2017 wish named the youth or music program memorial fund at her former church)-Marvin Methodist Church.