Mary Lowrie Norwood Barnett

Mary Lowrie Norwood Barnett, 83, of Grace Ridge, Morganton, NC died Friday, November 20, 2009 at Valdese General Hospital. Born in Wayne County, NC on January 30, 1926, she was the daughter of the late Thomas Hart Norwood and Margaret Shannon Norwood. Mary Lowrie was a member of Grace Episcopal Church where she had been a Lay Reader, member of church choir, a bell-ringer, and was working on her certificate through Education for Ministries. She graduated from U.N.C. Chapel Hill with a master’s degree in Library Science and was the Director of the Burke County Public Library for thirty years. She loved to travel, garden, read aloud and email.Mary Lowrie is survived by her husband, Douglas Allen Barnett; sons, Allen Barnett and wife, Janet, of Pattersonville, NY, and Thomas Barnett and wife, Bonnie, of Morganton; grandchildren, Johnathan DeRosa Barnett, Zachary Ryan Barnett, and Charles Nicholas Barnett; and a sister, Ruth Norwood Kemp and husband, Philip, of Goldsboro, NC.In addition to her parents, Mary Lowrie was preceded in death by a brother, Neil S. Norwood.A celebration of Mary Lowrie’s life will be held at 3:00 p.m, Wednesday, November 25, 2009 at Grace Episcopal Church with Rev. Bruce Walker officiating. The family will receive friends in the church’s parish hall following the service. Sossoman Funeral Home is assisting the family with the arrangements.