Miss Barbara Bowman is a woman I will never forget in my life. Talking about her brings back may sweet memories of boarding school when we were all happy go lucky young girls. As students, we had no problems, we had all the answers to everything, and little did we realise the impact that safe environment created by the Quaker missionaries would have on our lives. Little did we realize the environment we were in was to shape our lives forever. I know if we could set the clock back, there are many things many girls will like to change. The environment created in wghs was one that stimulated us and allowed us to do our very best. I salute her as she left everything she knew, making a sacrifice that has offered us what we all have today. 'Bowmie baaah ohhh' was the usual warning message as you paraded the school at night ensuring the girls were safe at night and sleeping. Little did we realize the value of Miss Bowman ensuring we were safe. It was a nuisance as we tried to chat late at night when she would send us out into 'Attra' as our punishment for not getting the rest that school recommended for our good health. Well done for being such a caring teacher who we completely misunderstood during that phase of our lives. Fare thee well Miss Bowman. You made a difference to so many lives !!

I remember Barbara with great affection - her grounded presence in meetings for worship; her warmth; the fearless clarity which characterised many Friends of her generation. I shall miss her. Angus Winchester.

Many of us have good posture because of Ms. Bowman. She was very particular about us walking straight with your head up. She would come behind you and give you a good quack on the back if you were not sitting straight. Most of us resented that but now we realize just how excellent it was for her to have been looking out for us! A good posture does a lot for you especially when you step out into a crowd because you always stand out! Rest in perfect peace in the arms of the Lord you served so well. You will always live in us as we remember the good that you instilled in us. Dr. Eva Shaw-Taylor - Lanham, Md. USA.

The Late Barbara Bowman The late Miss Barbara Bowman arrived in Ghana in 1956 when the country then known as the Gold Coast had become an independent country Ghana. She came to teach English at the school known as Wesley Girls High school at Cape Coast, Ghana. Wesley Girls High School (WGHS) is a very old and well established girls’ school. As Barbara Bowman herself said she fell in love with the school straightaway, and determined to give it her best. No wonder her students always achieved high grades in their examinations. She taught English and elocution to form 1 students and English Literature to the sixth formers. In 1961 she was appointed Assistant Headmistress and worked tirelessly with the late Mrs Clarice Howorth nee Garnett, the then newly appointed headmistress, to maintain the high standards of the school. She retired from the school in 1972 and returned to the UK where she continued to take keen interest in the school. In Britain she became an active member of the Wesley Girls High school Old Girls Association UK. She took part in the fund raising activities of the Association. We will miss her so much Courtesy Mrs. Eunice Ocran (For WGHS OGA UK & IRELAND)

Even at this stage in one’s life, I remember what a senior colleague once told me. He said: “Teachers may not remember all the students they have ever taught, but just one encounter between a teacher and a student stays with that student forever”. This statement has come true on so many occasions since I left teaching. It came flooding back when I heard of Miss Bowman’s passing. I attended Wesley Girls’ High School, Cape Coast, Ghana. The late Mrs. Howorth and Miss Bowman were Headmistress and Assistance Head Mistress respectively at the school during my seven years there. There is one encounter with Miss Bowman that is etched on my mind. We used to file in silence, and straight rows to and from the classroom for morning assembly. One morning, I moved into a different row from the one I entered the hall in. I thought I would get back to the classroom quicker (as you do). But Miss Bowman had spotted my sneaky behaviour from the gallery and was waiting for me at the classroom door. Mind you I could be spotted easily because for some reason I had white socks on that day. My punishment was to stand in front of the administrative offices until it was time to go to the dining room. Never made that mistake again! Miss Bowman was strict, but looking back now she just wanted what was best for us. Through the Old Girls’ Association UK, I became aware of where she was residing in the UK. I had the privilege to visit her at her lovely home in Settle on more than 3 occasions. She was very welcoming, generous and witty, not the person I remember from my school days. She had such love for the school and the country of Ghana. I am glad I got to share those private moments with her and will forever cherish those memories. I end with what I said to the Settle Meeting House in 2009, “Thank you Miss Bowman for all the sacrifices you made so we were able to enjoy the best education and learnt lessons that have helped us in our lives”. Rest in eternal peace.

Dear Ms Bowman, you invested a considerable amount of your life on earth in us. At Wesley Girls’ High School you taught and disciplined us. Thank you!! We will forever cherish your memory. REST IN PEACE. WGHS ‘74 year group

Principled. Loyal. Strict. Disciplinarian. Candid. Practical. Down-to-earth. Solicitous … These are but a few terms that, in my view, characterise Miss Barbara Bowman, who was Assistant Headmistress during my time at Wesley Girls’ High School, Cape Coast, Ghana. First Encounter: It was Friday 16th September, 1966 ... my second day in Wesley Girls’ High School. Ninety-six (96) 11- to 14-year olds had reported for Form 1 the previous day and were now gathered in our various classrooms, as instructed. Then suddenly, Miss Barbara Bowman, the Assistant Headmistress, strode briskly into my classroom — Form 1J, where thirty-two (32) 11- and 12-year olds were seated, with a welcoming smile on her face. She soon got down to her assignment, which was to show us how to sew our name in the inside facing of our school uniform. For this purpose, she had to teach us the “chain stitch.” Patiently, she helped us individually to come to grips with the chain stitch; she also advised us on the best colour thread to use; and was ready with cotton wool to wipe away any blood resulting from a needle prick due, obviously, to clumsy sewing. Fast forward to Form 4, 3rd term. I had been selected to spend the next academic year (1970/71) in the USA, following my success in an essay competition (administered in the school) that was only open, at the time, to Form 4 students in various schools. Miss Bowman sent for me; and as I walked into her office, she looked up and gave me a warm smile. She congratulated me on being selected — then voiced her concern: the Ministry of Education had informed the School that the recommended age for selected students was 17 and she felt that age 15, I was a bit too young to take up the offer, even if I would turn 16 a few months after my arrival in the USA. She was also concerned that in my absence, the English Literature syllabus was due to change, which meant I’d only have 2 terms to catch up on a full academic year’s work on my return to Form 5. I readily heeded her advice. By God’s grace, the essay competition was extended to Form 5 students the following year — and this time, when I was again selected, Miss Bowman didn’t hesitate to encourage me to take up the offer. Together with the Headmistress, Miss Clarice Garnett (of blessed memory) she scheduled my trips to the Cape Coast hospital for the series of vaccinations I was required to have. They all had to be administered within a particular timeframe prior to my travel, so timing was very essential. Ever the considerate person, Miss Bowman gave me slides of scenes at Wesley Girls to take along with me to the US, so my new friends and family could see something about where I had come from. When I returned to Ghana and reported at School for 6th Form, Miss Bowman was the first person I met, in front of the Administration Block — and she welcomed me warmly back to school. Miss Bowman returned to the UK at the end of that academic year (1972/73). We missed her formidable and steadying presence and often reminisced about various scenes involving her. I recall that once, when we reported back to school at the beginning of a new academic year, Miss Bowman was absent. Some said she was on furlough; others said she was unwell and had therefore gone back to England for medical care and to recuperate. When she returned midway into the academic year, all of us were elated! For a few weeks, the moment one of us (especially the senior girls) saw her walking on the compound, the cry would go out: “Bowmie oooohhh!! Bowmie!!” and before long, the chant would be taken up, as all of us rushed out of our dormitories to wave at her and scream and shout. I believe Miss Bowman was quite surprised by all the attention – and she loved it. Who can forget Miss Bowman’s strictness, her punctuality; and her insistence on good manners, good morals, obedience and decorum? Above all, she was a stickler for the rules. I will always remember her inimitable way of starting off the invigilation process, particularly for national examinations. Once the answer sheets had been distributed, she would ensure that girls wrote out their names and index numbers. Then, standing on the stage in the Assembly Hall, where the O and A Level exams always took place, Miss Bowman would announce formally and in a very loud and stern tone: “I will open the question papers NOW!!” The sheer formality of it all was enough to make us take the task at hand very seriously. Miss Bowman, “Bowmie”: you have indeed served your generation well and you now deserve your eternal rest. I thank God for your influence in my life during my formative years. Rest in perfect peace. Mary-Anne Addo WGHS 1971 Year Group

Forever the 'Miss Bowman' I met in 1972 when I started high school in Ghana. A woman wielding much authority! So, back in 2011 or 2012,my pbdTravel International Tours in the UK organise a tour for some of us OGA UK members to visit Garnie in Settle! All that was organised with Miss Bowman(Bowmie's) input! Lovely visit to Garnie and lunch afterwards in Bowmie's house... Nice..nice...till we grown OGA gals forget who our Bowmie was in those days! We finish our meal and start tucking in to the ice-cream over strawberry dessert... ...we sit giggling in Bowmie's kitchen forgetting that we've been brought up to leave the dinning hall soon after the last morsel had gone down our throats in those Wey Gey Hey days! Did we,in our 40s and 50s get a good telling off from Bowmie! Oh yes we did!She had planned our visit to the minute and it was well past time for us to leave that dinning table to attend to the next 'activity' in her parlour! 'Conversation Time' with Miss Bowman! Bowmie,thanks so much for your contributiin to our lives. Rest forever in peace knowing you did the Master's bidding by us! (Patience Boadu-Amoama '76 Year Group.)

My sympathy goes out to all Barbara's family and friends.She lived a very long life of service to others. I taught in Ghana from 1960-74 and we were colleagues at Wesley for 12. The school owed its stability, high standards and care for others to Clarice and Barbara. We had kept in touch ever since. Margaret Brinkworth

There is so much to remember, to celebrate and to be grateful for. I only got to know Barbara when I moved to Settle some 30 years ago, but I do just remember the visit to Britain in 1954 of six young people from the Soviet Union. This was during the 'cold war' and was arranged by Young Friends Central Committee and Barbara was very much involved. The 50 page report was published under the title 'Roots of Friendship', price 2s6d!

I had heard a lot about Miss Barbara Bowman or Bowmie, as she was referred to by her students, from my wife Elioenai, a member of the 1971 Year Group. The references had almost invariably been linked with ones to Clarice Garnett (Howorth) or Garnie as she was called by her students. It was therefore a great pleasure for me to have met Bowmie when I visited Garnie in Rathmell, North Yorkshire in 1992. It was a most memorable encounter which I have written about in my book, They Touched us for Good. Bowmie drove to Rathmell from nearby Settle and together with Roland Howorth, Clarice’s husband and Vivienne Wilkinson, a friend from Hall Royd Methodist Church in Shipley, West Yorkshire, we spent the better part of the day reminiscing about Ghana and Wesley Girls High School in particular. The two, Clarice and Barbara, sounded amused as I kept calling them Garnie and Bowmie. Their love for Ghana and Wesley Girls was palpable. I was deeply moved. After my return to Ghana, I maintained contact with them and was so pleased that my wife Elioenai and two eldest daughters Abena Okyerebea and Akua Adubea (who together with my two other daughters Eunice and Afua are all old girls) were able to visit Garnie and Bowmie on separate occasions when they were with our family friends in Shipley, West Yorkshire. The climax of the relationship with Bowmie was when on a visit to Ghana later, she, together with Jean Harrison (another former teacher at Wesley Girls who later transferred to Mfantsiman as Headmistress) joined me and my daughter Abena Okyerebea on a day return visit to our home at Abiriw on the Akuapem Ridge. Bowmie really enjoyed the visit and said that she had not been to that part of Ghana before. My impressions of Bowmie was that of a very well organised person. At the time I met her, she was keeping very fit, maintaining her garden immaculately and was engaged in social work. May she rest in peace. Kofi Otutu Adu Labi Accra, Ghana

From Alberta Croffie Quayson,you will be missed Auntie Barbara,thanks for your loving challenging advice on my professional and personal life,for ever grateful .Amen.

Barbara Bowman, as we called her in Quaker circles, was a friend to my parents as they were age mates but I was closer to her and Clarice than the rest of my siblings - even those that went to Wesley Girls. I am an old girl of Mfantsiman and since they left Ghana, I made it a point to visit them each time I went to UK or on my way to Canada or the US. On such days, I had to sleep in both homes . It was easy if I was staying for a number of days that was an even number. If it was an odd one there was always the issue of who gets the extra day. They in turn would always visit me in Tema anytime they came back into the country. In her latter years, Barbara and Jeanne Harrison who taught in Mfantsiman were always together and visited Ghana a couple of year ago. They both visited the two schools to see all the changes that had occurred. Jeanne died about a month before Barbara. May their souls rest in perfect peace. Edwina Assan (Moga 77)

MISS BARBARA BOWMAN Miss Barbara Bowman came to the school in the mid 1950s to early 1970s. She was the English language and English literature teacher. She later became the Assistant Headmistress (Academic), she was very instrumental in preparations for the Form 5 and 6th Form examinations of the West African Examination Council ensuring that the necessary forms were daily completed by students and submitted on time. She arranged the supervision of the junior classes during study times and would parade the school classrooms during the evening to ensure that study period was well utilized by students. She actually played a significant part in the lives of many students directing them to the choice of subjects for higher education. A few reminiscents about Miss Brown also affectionately nicknamed “Bowmie”, after lights out, i.e. about 9:00p.m, on the Verandah of block-Bellamy House, Miss Bowman on “night patrol” hearing students talking would say- “Miss Bowman is she here and can hear all that you are saying”. Then the whole floor will go silent. “On entering a dormitory where students are speaking and making noise: students would say “Please Miss Bowman the rat is still here and worrying us” Of course she will not fall for this clear lie and march them out for punishment. There are many of such stories that can be recounted, of course on the lighter side. Many old girls of the school who passed through her hands are grateful for the impact she had had on them and the many rhymes they learnt. Miss Bowman’s soul rest in perfect peace till we all meet in eternity. Madam Peace

WHAT IS THIS THAT I HEAR?* Ms Barbara A Bowman dead? Ms Bowman cannot die........ Ms Bowman is *NOT* dead! Ms Bowman *IS* alive!! Alive in all of us..... the generations of girls who passed through her hands; alive even in those who came after she had left because Ms Bowman, *"Bowmie"*, *is an institution* in herself in the same mould as Ms Olive Compton *"OC"* was. She did great by us! Ms Bowman, much feared then, but much loved...... Rest peacefully in His grace. A Tribute from Susan Annobil

• A tribute to Miss Bowman I was in Form 2 when my mother died in January 1962. I had chicken pox and had been admitted at the isolation ward of the Cape Coast Hospital. When my family came to inform the school of my mother’s death, Ms Bowman came to the hospital with my older sister to break the news to me. Ms. Bowman checked me out of the hospital and took me to pay my final respects to my mother. She then took me back to school and kept me in her bungalow until I was fully recovered. I got my meals from the dining hall but she would make a cup of hot cocoa at night and would read to me to go to sleep. This is the Miss Bowman I believe I alone knew. To everyone else she was the strict disciplinarian and competent teacher, but I got to see and know this other side of her. She dedicated her youth and a large chunk of her life to educate young African girls is a testament to her character. And all old girls who benefited from her able instruction in the English language and English literature are her legacy Mbo na yɛ, Bowmie!! Rest Well from your labours. Elisabeth Mends (née Wilson-Tagoe) 1965/67 Year Group. Elisabeth Mends Attorney and Mediator Tel: 713.962.6592

Fondly Remembering Miss Barbara Bowman – Wesley Girls High School - Class of 1972 execs@wghsoga.org We were admitted to Form 1 in 1967 and met Miss Barbara Bowman who was the Assistant Headmistress. We were young teenage girls who were lucky enough to have been admitted to this prestigious High School in Cape Coast, Ghana. It was clear that Miss Clarice Garnett and Miss Barbara Bowman worked together to keep over 500 girl students not just educated but trained to become the best women to contribute to building the nation of Ghana and grow to be useful to many institutions globally. This is how the news of Miss Bowman’s passing was met with by our Class of 1972. The announcement we received: “It is with the hope of resurrection that I announce on behalf of Prof. RoseEmma Entsuah-Mensah, the home call of our very dear Miss Barbara Bowman at 11.00 this morning. She was 97 years in April. She died at the Milton Nursing Home at Gargrave in North Yorkshire. There will be a private burial and a memorial service will be organised in her memory in 2021. May Bowmie rest in perfect peace. Amen” From the last line of the above announcement you can tell we lovingly called Miss Bowman “Bowmie”. In all honesty we newcomers just followed what the 400 or so students who were there before us nicknamed her. The WGHS72 year group’s sentiments are expressed in these short statements below: • Ooh Bowmie. Rest In Peace with the Master you served so faithfully. Many thanks for raising us for Him. • Bowmie was one of a kind !!! May she have a peaceful rest & may the earth lie softly on her remains for the investment in our lives • Alleluia Amen. Rest in perfect peace dear Bowmie • Aaaaw 'The golden rule is to be silent!' With backward movements. The number of times she caught me. Thanks for making my time at WGHS one big adventure and little did I know at the time equipping me with discipline strategies. RIP Bowmie. You have run a good race! Amen • Bowmie soooo selfless and down to earth. Rest in peace • Aww! Bowmie! May she rest in peace!! We thank her for the part she played in nurturing us to be who we are today! God bless her!! • Wow radiating inner beauty and strength in those sparkling eyes. Sleep on Bowmie! You paid your dues. • I remember Bowmie marching around the dorms after visitors’hour to make sure no boys were lurking in hidden places around. • Bowmie ooo! She was selfless! • So many fond memories of her. Bowmie had such passion, attending to her duty of fashioning out ...excellent young ladies We send our gratitude to the family that kindly shared Miss Bowman with us. Bowmie will be fondly remembered and sorely missed! The 96 Students of Wesley Girls’ High School Class of 1972.

Tributes to Miss Barbara Bowman (1923-2020) from the Old Girls of Wesley Girls High School Courtesy Joana Hackman

Bowmie did transform lives, she made sure her disciplined life rubbed off on us unknowingly. You only realised how your life had been impacted after leaving school. May her soul rest in perfect peace ✝✝✝. From 68 Year group. • Awww our dearest Bowmie. One of our great English Language teachers. Monday morning oral drill was exciting. May her gentle soul rest peacefully From 72 YG Lucy Blay was in a multicolored cloth to Sunday morning worship service. Miss Bowman called her and asked her whether she was sure that she was in blue and white cloth. Lucy answered yes Miss Bowman pointing to some small blue dots in the designs in the pattern saying this is blue, this is white. Several times Bowmie was asking Lucy just to let her confess otherwise. At a point Bowmie became annoyed and shouted Lucy are you colourblind? Lucy was insisting she was right . Bowmie would not let Lucy have her way and became annoyed .All Bowmie wanted was for Lucy to say sorry. Lucy then realized that Bowmie was annoyed when Bowmie started to speak with a harsh voice. Then Lucy finally said “Please Miss Bowman, I am sorry.” Then Bowmie asked her to go being happy that Lucy had said sorry not knowing that Lucy was in no way sorry! From 1963/65YG • “The centipede was happy once Until the toad in fun said Pray which leg goes after which Which set his mind to such a pitch He lay distracted in a ditch Considering how to run Daa dam da daa dam da” Do you remember this rhyme that Bowmie taught us? “There was an old woman who swallowed a fly, poor old woman I think she would die. There was an old woman who swallowed a spider which wriggled and wriggled inside her she swallowed the spider to catch the fly o my she swallowed a fly poor old man I think she would die.” If you don’t remember all let me know, and i will remind you. All Above from 1963/65YG.

Ms Bowman loved English literature and taught it such that we learned to love it too. She helped us see that though the cultures were different people were very similar in how they acted out their emotions and beliefs. This is from Araba Sefa - Dedeh , Class of ‘67 . • May Miss Bowman rest in perfect peace. We owe our great performance in English Language mostly to Bowie. From Mrs Henrietta Asamoah (née Inkabi) 1963 Year Group. • May her soul rest in peace. Our favourite English literature teacher. From 1965 group.

The 1983 visited on her 90th birthday. (Picture attached)

Bowmie did transform lives, she made sure her disciplined life rubbed off on us unknowingly. You only realised how your life had been impacted after leaving school. May her soul rest in perfect peace From 68 Year group • Sad news! She impacted our lives in unimaginable ways, during our formative years as young girls. One cannot talk about Miss Bowman without thinking of Miss Garnett too. The epitome of sacrifice I'd say! May God comfort the family and all affected by this sad news. From someone in the 1975 year group. • We thank God for her life and for all the tough love ! May she rest in perfect peace! We thank God for her life and her mission. We had fond memories of her especially Bellamy girls assigned to clean the assembly hall. When someone played chopsticks on the piano 🎹 one Saturday. She stormed in and shouted. “ in all my 16? years in this school, I’ve never been so cross! (Pause) Now take the benches and the chairs out!” May her soul Rest In Peace. From 1975 year group. • Bowmie is part of us because she helped to mould us to become who we are today. She disciplined us in love which we did not realize then. The Bible says no one likes discipline. From Janet Thompson 1972

MISS BARBARA BOWMAN Miss Barbara Bowman came to the school in the mid 1950s to early 1970s. She was the English language and English literature teacher. She later became the Assistant Headmistress (Academic), she was very instrumental in preparations for the Form 5 and 6th Form examinations of the West African Examination Council ensuring that the necessary forms were daily completed by students and submitted on time. She arranged the supervision of the junior classes during study times and would parade the school classrooms during the evening to ensure that study period was well utilized by students. She actually played a significant part in the lives of many students directing them to the choice of subjects for higher education. A few reminiscents about Miss Brown also affectionately nicknamed “Bowmie”, after lights out, i.e. about 9:00p.m, on the Verandah of block-Bellamy House, Miss Bowman on “night patrol” hearing students talking would say- “Miss Bowman is she here and can hear all that you are saying”. Then the whole floor will go silent. “On entering a dormitory where students are speaking and making noise: students would say “Please Miss Bowman the rat is still here and worrying us” Of course she will not fall for this clear lie and march them out for punishment. There are many of such stories that can be recounted, of course on the lighter side. Many old girls of the school who passed through her hands are grateful for the impact she had had on them and the many rhymes they learnt. Miss Bowman’s soul rest in perfect peace till we all meet in eternity. Madam Peace

Tribute to Miss Barbara Bowman I first met Miss Bowman in July 1969 when she interviewed me for the WGHS admission. I was 10 years old and to me she looked so stern and scary! When I got to WGHS she showed me a different side to her. On my 11th birthday she sent for me and I was dreading going to her office thinking I was in some kind of trouble. Instead she presented me with baked goodies and a bottle of orange squash and said 'I trust you'll have a nice birthday!' - What a lovely surprise and I never saw her as scary again ever!! She left Ghana in 1972 and I didn’t see her again till 1986 at the 170th anniversary dinner-dance in 1986. For a few years after that I saw her whenever we visited Mrs Howarth (Garnie) in Settle. Sometimes she'd host these visits in her house. After Garnie died we continued to visit Miss Bowman and attended her 90th birthday celebration That was a revelation! As a Quaker missionary she had been all over the world and there were people from China, India, USA and Africa of course. In Settle she was known as the 'Quaker woman' The last few years she wasn't so active or mobile but was always interested in the school. She would send me a christmas card or message to pass on to the 'old girls'. She was then living with Miss Jean Harrison another 'old teacher'. She later sent a message to say she had moved to a nursing home. The last time I visited was last year on her 96th birthday. She was her usual self and was reminiscing about her time in WGHS. 'It was a very interesting time for me. I made lifelong friends there' I asked her if she heard from the other teachers and she said 'they are probably all dead. I am very old you see, I am 96' That was the last time I saw her. This year I could not visit due to the lockdown but I called the home a few days after her birthday and was told she was in her room. She’d had a lovely birthday and was doing well so it was a shock to hear she had slipped away on Monday 11 May 'Bowmie is coming!!' and she'd answer 'Yes I'm coming. Run' Fare thee well Miss Bowman. You will be missed. May angels sing you to your eternal rest. Joana Hackman (74)

Hi, just a little something about Miss Bowman Miss Bowman was a talented , strict but fair teacher. She was very interested in litterature and one of her favourite areas of interest was poetry. As part of the sixth form activity for litterature students she used to take us to Rocky beach in Elmina. This was to encourage us to be inspired to write poems. It worked. It was through Miss Bowman that we were introduced to actors and actresses from the Royal Shakespeare Company. Under the umbrella of the British Council, this group visited Ghana and performed plays like "The Taming of the Shrew" . She took us to see films like " The Importance of being Earnest" at the British Council premises. The exposure to the world of drama encouraged some of us to act in plays organized by schools like St Augustines and later on plays by the Universities we attended. One of the actresses from the Royal Shakespeare Company who was on stage at that time in Cape Coast was Judy Dench, now Dame Judy Dench, winner of multiple Academy Awards, Bafta, Golden Globe and an Oscar for her role in "Shakespeare In Love." Sent by Adwoa Edgar ( nee deGraft Johnson) 67 Year Group.

From Rose Emma Mamaa Entsua-Mensah I met Miss Barbara Bowman at the tail end of her time in Ghana when I entered Wesley Girls High School in 1972. We heard a lot of stories about her when I was in school but it wasn’t till 1979 when I had finished sixth form that we met again. She was working at Friends House in Euston and I was then a young Quaker. She and Miss Clarice Garnett facilitated my going to a Quaker meeting in Switzerland and later to two work camps in Bognor Regis and Wigan. In 1990 I spent 3 months in Bangladesh as a Quaker volunteer and she was very much involved in arranging my trip and we kept in touch. From that time on we became very good friends and because she did not teach me at Wesley Girls it was very easy for us to be. Miss Garnett had been my headmistress so it was easier to relate to Barbara. She moved to Settle, North Yorkshire in the early 1990’s and at that time, Miss Garnett who was then Mrs. Howorth was living in Rathmell near Settle. She introduced me to Chris and Michael Yates who also became my friends till this day. I visited Clarice and Barbara often in the coming years and later on with my children Nanakua, Maame Adwoa and Kobby as well as my husband Paakwesi. They became a part of our family and my children knew them as Auntie Clarice and Auntie Barbara. They were very interested in what they did. Over the years Barbara and I forged a lasting friendship. Whenever I was feeling down and needed a friend to lean on she was there for me. I would go over to visit anytime I was in Europe or stopover on my way to the US. There was a time I went to visit and just slept for two straight days! She knew I was tired and just left me alone. Barbara was kind, intelligent independent and very blunt and I liked that about her. She introduced me to a variety of vegetarian foods but alas I never converted! We would have long conversations about her childhood in China, my work, my family, on being a Quaker and Ghana. Later on her friend Jean Harrison would join us. Barbara loved books and travel and she imparted her love of reading and travelling to me. She was always open to learning new things and interested in the world around her, she was a wonderful gardener. I remember going for a walk with her when she was 75 and she climbing up hills easily whilst I, 30 years younger was huffing and puffing behind her! She was a remarkable woman. As she grew older I could see her becoming frailer but her mind was still very sharp. When I visited her in September last year, she told me how much she valued our friendship and I was very touched. She made an impact on the lives of so many girls who went to Wesley Girls from 1956 to 1972. The out poring of grief and tributes when her death was announced gives testimony to this. It isn’t possible to put into words the importance of friendship and how much Barbara meant to me. She positively influenced my life in so many ways and I will miss her with all of my heart. Barbara, thank you for your friendship, I will miss you forever and never forget all of the time we spent together. Rest in peace my friend.

Remembering Barbara Bowman who was such a good friend to my family and a woman with the kindest and most generous heart. She helped me when I failed my A Levels. She let me stay in her flat for a couple of months when it was empty to give me space to revise for my re-sits. She was always offering her home, always thinking of other. And when she moved to Settle I often went up and met my mum there who would go up for little breaks and enjoy her beautiful bungalow.

Barbara was one of a kind. She was an example to us all. She was caring, generous, kind and loving. I've known her since I was a little girl when she visited India. She led an extraordinary life growing up in China, working in Ghana. A committed Quaker she lived simply. When I first came to Settle, Yorkshire 20 years ago I stayed with her. She gave me help support and courage when I needed it. It has been a privilege to have her in my life. Thank you Barbara. You will be missed. RIP.

We hope that you find this tribute to Barbara a place of comfort, support and inspiration for you to visit whenever you want or need to.