Barbara Jane Kemp, 84, of 9 Stone Street, West Carthage, died on Wednesday, July 3, at home with her family and under the care
of Hospice of Jefferson County.

She was born in Oswego, August 2, 1928, the daughter of Clarence and Margaret Nash Olmstead. She moved to Syracuse as an infant and graduated from Onondaga Valley Academy. She attended SUNY Oswego and was active in the Symphonic Choir, Housing Council, Oswegonian, Canterbury Club, Arethusa Society and was inducted into Kappa Delta Honorary Society at Oswego. She graduated in June 1949 with a BA in Education degree.

On July 2, 1949 she married James W. Kemp in St. Andrews in the Valley Episcopal Church, Syracuse, NY; the Rev. A. St. Clair Neild officiated.
Barbara taught 3rd, 4th and 6th grades at West Carthage Elementary School. She later moved to the Middle School where she taught 6th grade Math. She retired in June 1984 after 35 years of teaching.

With retirement she spent the next 26 years wintering in Surfside Beach, South Carolina.

A lifelong Episcopalian, she was very active in the choir, the EWO and served on the Altar Guild for many years at Grace Church, Carthage.

In Carthage, she was a member of Carthage Area Hospital Auxiliary, Carthage Women's Civic Club, Outlook Club and Wednesday Night Dinner Bridge Club. An ardent golfer, she belonged to Carlowden Country Club and was very active in several leagues. She enjoyed belonging to the Red Hat Society. In Surfside Beach she attended the Episcopal Church of the Resurrection and was a member of Racoon Run Golf Club.
She enjoyed cross stitching, quilting and knitting. She made hundreds of pairs of mittens for the various area Christmas mitten trees and made baby blankets for the Carthage Area Hospital Auxiliary and Angel Treads in Surfside Beach.

She is survived by her husband of 64 years, James W. of West Carthage, two daughters, Dr. Janet Kemp of Washington, D.C. and Canandaigua, NY. and Pamela Shepherd of Potsdam, NY, two grandchildren, Zachary Shepherd of Cambridge, MA, and Beth Shepherd of Potsdam, and a brother Cmdr. (Retired) Charles Olmstead, of Pensacola, Florida, and several nieces and nephews. Two sisters, Florence and Beatrice are pre-deceased.

Funeral services will be held on Monday, July 8 at 10:00 a.m. at the Grace Episcopal Church in Carthage with the Rev. Edward Murphy, officiating. Burial will be in Hillside Cemetery, West Carthage. Calling hours at the Bezanilla-McGraw Funeral Home will be on Sunday evening, from 6 – 8 p.m.

Memorial donations may be made to Grace Episcopal Church, Carthage Free Library, or the SUNY Oswego Alumni Association.