Barbara Joyce (Abel) Hettinger, 86, of Missoula, Montana, passed away June 20, 2024, at the Pearl Garden in The Village Senior Residence in Missoula, Montana. Barbara Joyce was born Dec. 5, 1937, at the Council Bluffs Hospital to Fred and Vera (Shafer) Abel.
Their family lived on farms near Hastings, Nebraska, and Marne, before purchasing a farm near Diagonal in 1947. Barbara attended country school through eighth grade and then graduated from Diagonal High School in 1955. In 1957, she married Donald Rice and they moved to Osceola.
To this union, three daughters were born. They later divorced and Barbara married John D. Hettinger on May 24, 1974.
They lived on a farm near Lenox until 1984. During that time, Barbara became a successful Avon representative, and enjoyed trucking with John and going on motorcycle trips with him. In 1984, they moved to Missoula, Montona, where Barbara lived for the rest of her life.
Barbara continued in Avon for 35 years, achieving the President’s Club award all 35 of those years. Barbara enjoyed camping at Flathead Lake with her husband, going to Yuma, Arizona, in the winter and playing card games with other couples, until he passed in 2009. Barbara continued to travel extensively and saw many beautiful parts of the world.
Barbara maintained a vigorous lifestyle and a strong faith-walk. She was an active member of First Lutheran Church, where she held various offices of LWML, led service groups and participated in Bible studies. She even took a.
