Barbara Ann Jennings

Barbara Ann Jennings of Whitehall passed away peacefully May 11, 2022 at age 78.

Born in Cleveland, Ohio moments ahead of identical twin Kathleen, daughter to the late Francis and Veronica Jennings, she joined brother Philip and later welcomed brother Ambrose. She graduated from Magnificat High School and then St. Johns College where she earned a nursing degree along with Kathleen.

Barbara will be remembered for her caring, unselfish nature and sense of fun and adventure throughout her life. Shortly after her graduation she chose to join the Peace Corps where she spent nearly 3 years volunteering in developing locations around Micronesia. Upon her return to America, she chose to continue her medical education in the field of ophthalmology and over the next decade worked with a number of well-known eye surgeons in New York City and Philadelphia. Around 1985 she joined the ophthalmologic practice of her brother-in-law Dr. Chandrappa Reshmi in Pittsburgh where she settled down for the long term. She continued her work to help improve lives through better vision and travelled extensively to experience different sights and cultures around the globe visiting multiple European nations as well as Japan and India. A few years later, her mother Veronica joined the family in the Pittsburgh area and experienced many good years as Alzheimer’s disease progressed, during which time Barbara took on the full-time role of primary caregiver for close to eight years.

Barbara always had great sense for fashion and artwork and put together collections of clothing, paintings and sculptures. She also developed an interest in astrology and astronomy, enjoying the night sky and reading everything by Carl Sagan! She enjoyed classical music and shared her favorites with everyone as a volunteer DJ at WQED. But above all she was an animal lover who, over the years, adopted and adored 3 cats – Simba, Sabu and Petey – and always enjoyed watching the local wildlife in her backyard.

She will be remembered fondly by many friends here and around the world, as well as sisters-in-law Lorrayne Jennings (Ambrose), Gretchen Bondy (Phillip), nieces Amy Jennings and Melanie Miller (Mark), sister Kathleen and brother-in-law Chandrappa Reshmi, their children Shalini and C.J., and grandniece Ava Bozik.