Mary Joyce Barton

Mary Joyce Barton formerly of Neavitt, MD, passed away on Friday, January 30, 2015, at Pines Genesis. She was 91. On July 21, 1923, she was born in Neavitt, MD, to the late Edward and Lucy (Harrison) Neavitt. After graduating from St. Michaels High School, she married Kennard W. Hambleton who was a local waterman. As a young wife and mother, she mastered the art of picking crabs, making crab cakes, shucking oysters and making Maryland beaten biscuits. After the death of her husband, she met the Rev. Charles E. Barton, Jr., and they were married on January 20, 1958. Being a United Methodist minister’s wife meant moving around to serve local churches through the years, taking them to Concord, MD, Secretary, MD, Cheswold, DE, Elkton, MD, Seaford, DE, and Dover, DE, to then settle into their life-long home in Neavitt, MD. Mary Joyce spent her life taking care of her family, serving the church and the community. She was a Sunday school teacher, a church organist, an active volunteer at Camp Pecometh and the Chesapeake Walk to Emmaus, and a lifelong member of the Neavitt United Methodist Church. While living in Seaford, Mary Joyce worked as a switchboard operator at the Methodist Manor House. She is survived by her four children, Joanna Birch of Secretary, MD, Chuck Barton (Tammy) of Berlin, MD., Edward N. Barton (Angela) of Elkridge, MD, and Mollie Barton-Worob (John) of Easton, MD.; six grandchildren; Jesse Birch Mills, Tayler, Olivia, Adrianna, Alexandra and Evan Barton; and two great-grandchildren, Rachel Barnes and Gary Camper Jr. Along with her parents, she was preceded in death by her first husband, Kennard W. Hambleton; her second husband, Rev. Charles E. Barton, Jr.; a brother, Edward Harrison Neavitt; a sister, Anna Oxenham, (recently deceased on January 29, 2015); and son-in-law, Paul R. Birch. Friends may call on Thursday, February 5, 2015, from 6-8pm at Fellows, Helfenbein & Newnam Funeral Home P.A. Easton, MD. A funeral service will be held on Friday, February 6, 2015, at 11am, at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in St. Michaels, MD. Burial will follow in Neavitt Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Neavitt Cemetery Fund, P.O. Box 163, Neavitt, MD 21652.

Mary Joyce Barton

July 21, 1923 - January 30, 2015