Lesa Dale Barton

Lesa Dale Barton, was born in 1958 in El Paso, Texas. Lesa was a precocious baby and always in the vanguard of her peers as a child. Lesa attended Dallas, Texas, schools and court reporter school in Dallas.
By age nineteen, Lesa was managing a business in Dallas, where she met Bob, the love of her life and husband to be. Bob was planning to depart on a long trip when he met Lesa; but that trip did not take place as previously planned. Lesa and Bob Barton were married on Valentine''s Day in 1981 in Pecos, Texas, after obtaining a marriage license from the County Clerk of Loving County, Texas, which has a very large area, very small population, and a name that Lesa and Bob found charming and romantic enough for the heading on their marriage license.
Bob and Lesa became itinerant prospectors, and for several years they spent summers in a motor home, prospecting in the Rogue and Illinois River Valleys of southwest Oregon, and wintering in Dallas (when the water in Oregon''s mountain rivers and streams is too cold for suction dredging) where Bob was engaged in his profession as an engineer. Lesa and Bob became retail shopkeepers in Grants Pass in 1984, when they began doing business as proprietors of the Armadillo Mining Shop, through which they became well known for their encyclopedic knowledge of all things mining by individual and hobbyist miners and the construction, handling and use of equipment and devices used for such purposes, and they came to be known for their considerable knowledge and expertise in the arcane body of laws and regulations governing such activities.
Lesa was a star who brightened the lives of those who knew her, and of many who simply encountered her briefly. For her all-too-brief time on this earth, the fire of life burned ever so brightly in Lesa, and could be observed in the pursuits to which she brought an intensity that is beyond the reach of most of us. While we will not catalog her pursuits, a couple of them might be mentioned. Lesa could make things grow, with flowering plants like dahlias, irises and orchids her strong suit, and beautiful, prolific blooms in the gardens wherever Lesa lived displayed their gratitude for Lesa''s care and love of gardening. Lesa was a tender-hearted and sensitive soul, whose heart was so open to helping small, lost or abandoned creatures; and those who had the good fortune to cross Lesa''s path often became the beneficiaries of her nurturing care. There were many canine, feline and avian friends, among others, to whom Lesa so freely and unselfishly gave her love, her attention, and her care.
Lesa -- wife, daughter, sister, aunt (and dear friend to many) -- was in her home among those who loved her dearly when her life was cut short at age 48 by cancer, on September 6, 2006.
Lesa is survived by her beloved husband and the love of her life, Bob Barton (Robert W. Barton III) of Grants Pass, Oregon, by her beloved mother, Ruth D. Greenberg, also of Grants Pass, by her mother-in-law Sylvera Barton of Temple, TX, by her brothers and sisters-in-law David and Jo-Sandra Greenberg of Garland, TX, and Stephen and Suzanne Greenberg of Austin, TX, by her sister-law Sue Lykes (and husband June Ebb) of Owl Creek, TX, and brother-in-law Jack Barton (and wife Jan) of Temple, TX and by nephews Bret Greenberg (and wife Robin) of Lancaster, PA, and Jay Greenberg (and wife Cynthia) of Falls Church, VA.
A small, private memorial service for family will have been held by the time this notice appears; and we expect that a subsequent announcement will be made at a future date, not yet determined, for a celebration of Lesa''s life to which all her friends will be welcome.
We will miss Lesa and will always remember her. In lieu of flowers, those who wish to make a gesture to honor Lesa''s memory may contribute to the Waldo Mining District c/o Armadillo Mining Shop, 2041 N.W. Vine Street, Grants Pass, OR 97526, or to the charitable cause of your choice.