Barbara Garrabrants

Barbara Jean (Morris) Garrabrants formerly of Union, NJ, passed away at the age of 87 on Sunday,
November 26, 2023, in her apartment at CareOne at the Cupola in Paramus, NJ.
Visitation will be Thursday, December 14th from 4 to 7 p.m. at Galante Funeral Home, 2800 Morris Ave,
Union, NJ 07083. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. on Sunday, December 17th at Connecticut
Farms Presbyterian Church, 888 Stuyvesant Ave., Union, NJ 07083 with a reception immediately
following the service.

Barbara was born in Elizabeth, NJ, and lived in Union for most of her life. She was a 1954 graduate of
Union High School, attended Kean College, and graduated from Columbia University with a degree in
Occupational Therapy. She was a life-long member of Connecticut Farms Presbyterian Church where she
met her beloved husband of 57 years, David George Garrabrants.

Barbara was a teacher at Connecticut Farms Nursery School for over 30 years and worked at Connecticut
Farms Presbyterian Church as a financial officer. She enjoyed music and singing and was a faithful
member of the church choir. She served the church in a variety of ways during her lifetime including
church historian, food pantry volunteer, and, along with Dave, a senior high youth advisor. Some of the
teens Barb and Dave met have maintained life-long relationships with “Mr. and Mrs. G”. As church
historian, she worked with the Union Township Historical Society in Union County’s annual “Four
Centuries in a Weekend” program. She also chaired a committee to publish a book on the 275-year
history of Connecticut Farms Presbyterian Church and was the principal author.

Always creating and crafting, Barb enjoyed ceramics, quilling, counted cross stitch, and crocheting. Barb
and Dave created unique gifts by decorating wedding invitations and birth announcements with Barb’s
quilling and Dave’s custom-made frames. To continue her mother’s legacy of sewing for Tender Loving
Care Ministries (TLC), Barb began crocheting purses for little girls in Appalachia. Between 2001 and
2020, she donated about 150 purses a year to TLC and Putting Prayers to Action.

Barb moved to CareOne at the Cupola in May 2022 and quickly became a familiar face to residents and
staff alike. She was presented with the title of Resident Ambassador and took her role seriously. She
particularly enjoyed welcoming new residents to the Cupola and greeting everyone on their way to the
dining room. The family greatly appreciates the kindness and care of the CareOne staff in Barb’s final
years.

Barbara was predeceased by her parents, Dorothy Elizabeth (Crane) and Charles Ellis Morris, and her
beloved husband, David. She is survived by her daughter, Beth Jean Canning and her husband, Robert,
and her son, Andrew Charles Garrabrants and his wife, Lucy (Zemp). Barb also delighted in her four-
footed family members who, over the years, included five dogs and a cat.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Music Fund at Connecticut Farms
Presbyterian Church (888 Stuyvesant Ave, Union, NJ 07083), Putting Prayers to Action
(www.puttingprayerstoaction.com), or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (www.stjude.org).