Barbara Gott Goodlett

Mrs. Barbara Goodlett of Kingsport, died Thursday, May 30, 2013 at Indian Path Medical Center after a sudden and brief illness. A native of Kingsport, she was the daughter of the late Robert W. and Elizabeth D. Gott. She graduated from Dobyns-Bennett High School, attended Queens College, Charlotte, NC, and graduated from East Tennessee State University with B.S. and M.A. degrees. Mrs. Goodlett taught English at Dobyns-Bennett High School and was an assistant principal there. In 1999 she was elected to the Kingsport Board of Education and served as president for four years.

She served on other local civic boards: Volunteer Kingsport, Goodwill Industries, Inc., Girls, Inc., the Kingsport Literacy Council, and was appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the Kingsport Public Library. A former President of the Kingsport Book Club, she was also a member of the Kingsport Junior League.

In 1995, her book, TWENTY-THREE VALENTINES FROM MARSHA, was published world-wide by Reader's Digest. Along with the publication of other articles in Guideposts and Good Housekeeping magazines, she wrote another book about early Kingsport, "A Quarter's Worth of Love."

Mrs. Goodlett taught adult Sunday School classes at First Broad Street United Methodist Church where she was a lifelong member.

Her only daughter, Marsha Lynn Toomey, preceded her in death in 1986.

Survivors include her husband, Dr. V. Wilson Goodlett of Kingsport; son, Dr. Mitchell A. Toomey and wife, Sarah; two grandsons, Patrick and Ryan Toomey of Nashville, TN; step-daughter, Carole Richardson and husband, Tom; step-son, Steve Goodlett and wife, Kathy; three step-granddaughters, Sarah, Claire and Molly of Oak Hill, VA; and three step-grandchildren, Meagan, Matthew and Hannah Goodlett of Columbus, Ohio.

A family entombment service will be conducted in Oak Hill Memorial Park.

A memorial service will be conducted on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. at First Broad Street United Methodist Church with Rev. Jack P. Weikel and Rev. Spurgeon McCartt officiating. The family will receive friends following the service in the church parlor.

Memorial contributions may be sent to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105 or to the Huntington's Disease Foundation, 505 Eighth Ave., New York, NY, 10018.

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