Libby Barrow, 72, of Bixby, Oklahoma, passed away on July 2 from a sudden brain aneurysm. While Libby was known to be routinely late, she left this world far too early. We take comfort knowing she was doing what she loved most: riding a pony at her beloved barn.
Libby Susan Carlson was born on February 8, 1953, in Casper, Wyoming, to Loyd and Elaine Carlson. She had one sibling, her brother Eric.
Libby married the love of her life, Alan Barrow, on May 3, 1975. They had just celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. Together, they raised three children: Jennifer, Thomas, and Bryan, each who will tell you there was no greater mother in the world.
While Alan was the love of her life, Libby found her first love at age 9 when she started riding horses. From that moment on, she spent her life in the horse world, shaping horses and riders with quiet grit and endless heart. Her unmatched gift for turning chaos into confidence impacted generations of equestrians who carry her lessons forward in and out of the ring, and her legacy lives on in every student she believed in before they believed in themselves.
Her home was filled with traditions and joy: handmade stockings, decades of Christmas villages, and too many sugar cookies to count. She enjoyed her flowers, board games with anyone she could coerce to play, card games, and weekly rounds of Yahtzee with her best friend, Carol.
Libby was always ready to help and her instinct was always to say yes to anyone who needed her. Over time, she learned to balance that generosity with some well-earned boundaries to fully enjoy the life she built. Her love was quiet but constant: a warm meal, a soft laugh, a steady presence, or a perfectly timed nap.
She was a beloved wife and mother, a trainer to hundreds of students, a dear friend, and without a doubt the greatest grandmother any child could ever ask for. Libby's four grandchildren: Maddox, Lyla, Coen, and Cecelia, were the light of her life and she was theirs. She was an excellent shopkeeper, doctor, fireman, cat, dragon, or whatever else her grandkids imagined her to be that day. She was so happy that Maddox was riding and for the countless hours they spent together doing what they both loved.
She was preceded in death by her father Loyd, her mother Elaine, and her stepmother Avis.
She is survived by her husband, Alan; her children, Jennifer (Zac), Thomas (Kori), Bryan, daughter-in-law Cassandra; son-in law Jeff, her grandchildren, Maddox, Lyla, Coen, and Cecelia; her brother, Eric; her stepsister Cricket, her brother and sister-in-law Bob and Lenore, her brother-in-law Victor, and countless friends, riders, and students whose lives she touched.
A celebration of Libby's life and legacy will be held on Wednesday, July 9th at 3pm. at St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church in Tulsa.