Barbara Stockwell’s 50 Years in Arivaca
July 1, 2007
It would be hard to imagine Arivaca without Barbara Stockwell. At least, I can’t. She first came here 50 years ago, on the Fourth of July 1957. Her parents, Bob and Mary Marshall, had come down to Arivaca to open a café. Barbara had just finished her freshman year at ASU in Tempe and came to visit them.
She attended the Fourth of July dance at La Gitana Bar and soon met Joe Pianka, the Lopez brothers, Pete Phelps, and Alice Allen, among others. Matchmaking ensued. A few days later she was introduced to her future husband, Edwin S. Stockwell, who was working bees here in Arivaca with his father T.L “Pete”. It only took Ed two dates before he proposed. First date was a picnic in Tres Bellotas canyon in a 1942 Army jeep (which Barbara still owns).
They were married on Feb 1, 1958 but not before he had promised that she could finish college. He was proud of her abilities and commitment to education. They got a little trailer that they could move back and forth to Tucson, so that she could go to the U of A. She had the first of her children in 1959. One of my early memories is of Barbara rocking newborn Sally, in that same little trailer in Arivaca. Barbara did not drive until she realized that she couldn’t be 7 months pregnant, carry books and ride the city bus to the U of A, so she learned to drive a car. She remembered how terrifying it was, as a former city kid, to drive to Tucson on the bouncy, rocky dirt Arivaca road.
Barbara went on to graduate from the University of Arizona in 1961 with a B.A. in Education, and by then there were two children. Edwin S. (Eddie) was born in 1960. Barbara and Ed had two more children, Beverly and Robert, by 1966. She substituted at Tubac School and the old Sopori School when the kids were old enough to be babysat by grandparents, who were all here in town. Later she taught at San Fernando School in Sasabe, as Title 1 teacher from 1989 to 1998.
Community Service is Barbara’s goal—“I have always participated in as many aspects of the Arivaca community as time and energy permit.” And she has a lot of energy. She became involved with the Homemakers Club, which most ladies in town belonged to. Her mother, Mary, and mother-in-law, LaPriel Stockwell, were both very active. She got her leadership training, beginning with the local state and county Homemakers clubs followed by the Pima County Cooperative Extension Board. They were always short of production agriculture people, she remembered. Barbara’s community involvement started here, in this little town with all its needs—in those days there was nothing here; no paved road, no fire department, no library, no human resources, no clinic, no community center, nothing but two stores, a bar, a restaurant, a falling-down old school and post office. So she would see a need and fill it. The Homemakers began managing the Old School and its upkeep. The Cemetery needed a committee and officers, as did other groups. Fundraising was a way of life. Barbara got involved with 4-H in 1968, helping children with their projects such as cooking, sewing, entomology, geology, folklorico dancing and recently, archery. She has kept that up and received membership in the Arizona 4-H Hall of Fame in 2004. She supported her children in their school activities including band and chess. They won lots of state and national chess tournaments. Trico involvement came later, after Ed passed away.
Just like in the book, she remembered, “we sat down to dinner and in a moment my life changed.” It was September 1, 1975. After dinner with the four children and their cousins, Ed went down to play chess with his father-in-law, Bob. Suddenly Ed clutched his chest and died. Just like that. He was 44. Barbara was left with four children, ages 8-16, and a honey business. Pete had turned it over to Ed a few years before, and he was getting too old to be involved. Eddie was 14 years old. Barbara had 1400 hives of bees to take care of. Initially with some help from family, she and Eddie found all the hives and learned how to work bees. The Bee Lab people in Tucson would come out and work with them. She was allergic to bee stings, a common problem for beekeepers’ family members, but learned how to handle that as well. She met a California beekeeper, Andy Nachbaur, at a national meeting, and married him in 1982. That marriage only lasted until 1986, She managed Stockwell Honey Company from 1975 to 1991, when Ed Jr. and his wife Chris took over the business.
During the “bee years,” Barbara was an active member of the Arizona Beekeepers Association, American Honey Producers and American Beekeeping Federation. Barbara’s vision is nation-wide, not just local, and she has served as an officer in many of the organizations she has served. As an alternate to the National Honey Board, there was a chance to promote honey and meet buyers.
In 1979, rancher Fred Noon decided to retire from the board of Trico Electric Cooperative, which is part of the National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association. Barbara decided to run for that directorship, as the first woman to serve, and has been there ever since. Trico opened up a whole new world, as board members must study up each month on all the power issues they will be voting on. But Barbara is a quick learner and has found a place on the Grand Canyon State Electric Cooperative Association Board and the Southwest Transmission Cooperative board as well. For the three years she served on the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative, she represented AZ, NM and TX, where she had the opportunity to travel to far-flung meeting sites.
Today, Barbara is still involved with the Friends of the Arivaca Library, with 4-H and is secretary of Arivaca Family and Community Education (formerly Homemakers). She manages the local team of Walk Across Arizona. She is involved with the LDS church in Sahuarita, teaching Sunday School classes. She is Water Operator for the town of Sasabe. Last year her home was on the Arivaca Home Tour, featuring her collection of Baboquivari and San Xavier art. She travels a lot and makes sure a local high school junior participates in the Trico-sponsored trip to Washington. She is very proud of her children, all with college degrees (one math teacher and three engineers.) She loves her 14 grandchildren, two of whom live here in Arivaca. She travels a lot, to visit her family, now scattered around the U.S., and much enjoys representing her organizations.
What is there to learn from Barbara? Number one, I think, is that even if you live in Arivaca you can get a degree in higher education. Number two is to commit to your family and community in all ways you can with all the effort you can muster. And number three is to love your neighbors, put up with their foibles, and help them when you can. That’s our Barbara. Nothing gets in the way of what she thinks she ought to do. You can’t keep up with her– what energy and drive! Everything is exciting. Next year she will be 70, and hasn’t slowed down. As she says, “It’s been a fun life!” And hopefully more to come!
Copyright 2007 Mary Kasulaitis
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