Dr. Louise Mccants Barry

Louise Spears McCants Barry, of Charlotte, died peacefully on October 25, 2016 at the age of 92. Born to Blaine and Piety Griffin Spears in Appleton, Arkansas on April 22, 1924, she was the fifth generation of her family to have been born in the Arkansas Ozarks. After graduation from high school, she attended Arkansas Tech Junior College before transferring to Oklahoma A & M, where she earned B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mathematics. She continued her education and received a Ph D. in Mathematics Education from Ohio State University. In 1947 she married Robert Orville McCants, moved to Dayton, Ohio where they lived for 30 years having three children. When her youngest child started school she resumed her teaching career enjoying the combined responsibilities of wife, mother, and career woman. Louise's tenure in Dayton included 2 years work as a statistician at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, and from 1966-78 as a Professor of Mathematics at Sinclair Community College. When her marriage ended, she re-located to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, accepting a position as Academic Dean of Kirkwood Community College, 1978-1983, and later as Director of Instruction of the Metropolitan Community College system, Kansas City, Missouri, 1983-1988. She retired in Kansas City in 1988 and began a writing and speaking career. She was the author of three books: Cinderella Doesn't Work Here Anymore, 1986, Retire to Fun and Freedom, 1988, and A Price Beyond Rubies, 1996, a novel of the Ozarks during the Civil War, and wrote numerous newspaper columns and magazine articles. She served on many boards, including the Iowa Humanities Board, the Cedar Rapids Symphony Board, the Missouri Humanities Board, the Missouri Bio-Ethics Committee, and the Rockhurst High School Board. She took special pride in having been named an honorary alumna of Rockhurst High School, an all male Jesuit high school in Kansas City, Missouri. She is listed in Who' Who in American Women as College Teacher, Administrator, and Author. At 65 years old, she was introduced to Dr. William Barry, MD, a surgeon in Kansas City. They fell deeply in love. Although their time and marriage together was all too brief, they enjoyed 8 years together before his passing in 1997. On October 1, 2006, Louise moved to Southminster Retirement Community, in Charlotte, NC. She is survived by her son, Blaine McCants, his wife Janice and their two children, Russell and Mary of Vienna, VA; her daughter, Janice McCants Patrick and her husband, Gilbert of Kings Mountain, NC; her son Robert McCants and his wife Sonia of Ft. Hood, TX; a brother Robert Spears; a sister Ruth Hern; and numerous nieces, nephews, and friends. Louise loved people and she loved life and was always reading and writing. She was a member of St. Peter's Catholic Church. A memorial service will be held at Southminster's Great room at 11:00 AM on Saturday, October 29, with a reception immediately following hosted by her family. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Mauney Memorial Library Building Fund, PO Box 429, Kings Mountain, NC 28086. Southminster is located at 8919 Park Rd, Charlotte, NC 28086. Funeral arrangements by Harris Funeral Home in Kings Mountain, NC.