Barbara Kay Noble Duffield of Jasper, Georgia died May 1, 2026, at Wellstar Tranquility Hospice in Marietta. She was 87 years old.

The younger daughter of the late Ralph Wick Noble and Edna Helen Sammons Noble, she is also preceded in death by her sister June Parker Noble Lee, and her oldest daughter Terry Lee Duffield Brown.

She is survived by two daughters: Debra June Duffield Jankowski and her husband Tom Jankowski of Kennesaw, GA and Angela Kay Duffield Harrell of Asheville, NC; two grandchildren: Chase Brown and his wife Kali of Poca, WV and Amy Brown Lewis of Wilmington, NC; and four great grandchildren: Jacob Brown, Chance Brown, Annalie Lewis and Connor Lewis; as well as dear colleagues, friends and neighbors.

Her modest beginning was in the coal mining communities of West Virginia, including Acme, United, and Campbell’s Creek, where her father owned a grocery store. She attended Marshall University and became an English teacher. When her young family moved to the Atlanta area she began a career in Early Childhood Education, teaching in the first Title 1 program in Cobb County, Georgia. She earned an M.A. and an Ed.S. from the University of Georgia, and a Ph.D. from Georgia State University, with later studies in Infant Mental Health. Her professional life included work in Kanawha County Schools in WV, Cobb County schools, Brenau University, the University of Toledo, Reinhardt College, and finally Pickens County Schools Head Start Program. Following retirement, she continued to work with and advocate for at-risk children in Pickens County, and tutored adults for their GEDs. She loved the outdoors and was an avid gardener, a hiker with enough miles to earn membership in the Appalachian Trail Club, a lover of the beach, as well as a swimmer and swimming teacher, dancer throughout her life, a voracious reader, and always an advocate for education and children . She was a member of the Jasper Seventh Day Adventist Church. A former Girl Scout and Leader, she taught camp songs to her young daughters and for years those sing-alongs filled the hours on long car trips, especially between GA & WV. Bobbie Kay, as she is known in West Virginia, and Dr. Barbara, in her later years will be missed dearly for her lively demeanor and generous spirit.

The family will receive friends at Cagle Funeral Home on Saturday, May 9, 2026, beginning at 3:00 p.m. and continuing until the service hour. Barbara’s memorial service will follow at 4:00 p.m. in The Robert A. Cagle Memorial Chapel officiating Pastor Mihail Baciu.

Cagle Funeral Home is proudly serving the family of Ms. Barbara Duffield.