Barbara Larson McKenney

Barbara Mckenney of Fairfax, VA passed away peacefully on March 25, 2025 at the age of 83. She leaves behind a grieving and grateful family of three children, Doug McKenney, Susan Worden (Mike), and Beth Thomas (Tom); and five grandchildren, Mary, Colin, Lily, Joseph and Emily.

Born in 1942 as Barbara Joanne Larson, her insatiable curiosity and intellect was evident at an early age. Following a move from Ashtabula, Ohio to Alexandria, VA, she skipped first grade. Over the course of her childhood and teen years, she continued to excel academically and expanded into extracurriculars including Latin, drama, and debate. In debate, her appearance often drew surprised looks in a field that at that time was almost exclusively male; in her senior year at Groveton High School, she and her teammate won the Virginia state championship.

Barbara was awarded a scholarship to William & Mary College, which she attended briefly before marrying and starting a family. She helped support the family through the remainder of her husband’s time as an undergraduate through law school with a variety of jobs while at the same time giving birth to two of their three children.

As her husband rose professionally, Barbara maintained their home and cared for their children with a creative drive that was distinct, making all of the children’s clothes for their early years and even developing the skill and precision to draft the blueprints for the family’s future “dream” home in Virginia Beach. She also found time to study eastern spirituality, hosting yoga sessions in her home, and enrolling her children in a course in Transcendental Meditation. She was passionate about providing her children with the learning opportunities, books and resources that her own family had not been able to provide her when she was a child. She treasured her home and beautifully tended garden. During this time, she first had the opportunity to indulge her lifelong love of animals, and the family expanded to include multiple dogs and cats, each with their own colorful personality.

Over time, her love of books and learning drew her back to college. Ultimately she was drawn to take up her lifelong dream to study Russian language and culture. By the time she graduated from Old Dominion University with a major in Russian and a minor in German language, she had divorced. She then went on to pursue a graduate degree in Russian at the State University of New York - Albany.

Barbara earned a place in a highly competitive postgraduate program in Moscow. This year-long program was the adventure of a lifetime even as she was challenged to navigate the inevitable complexities of being an American student in Soviet Russia at the peak of the Cold War; in fact, her time there coincided with the U.S. boycott of the 1980 Moscow Summer Olympics. Despite the paranoia and fear that was rife in all levels of Soviet life, she managed to develop meaningful relationships with gusto. Through this experience, Barbara achieved full fluency in a language so complex that more than one native Russian professor had told her it would be impossible for someone starting at her stage of life.

Her signature grit and determination would serve Barbara well as she effectively launched her career in her early forties. Her research skills and language proficiency were a natural fit for the intelligence community, and she rose to the top of her field over the course of her 25+ year career.

In her latter professional years, Barbara lived to spend time with, care for, and provide for her five grandchildren. She had no greater thrill than celebrating Halloween and Christmas with them, buying them adorable outfits, books, educational games, and toys that suited their personal interests, as well as babysitting while making them Texas toast.

Following her retirement at age 70, Barbara faced a series of health challenges. She endured 15 years of Parkinson’s Disease with integrity and tenacity. When she suffered a collapse in early 2017, her mobility was restricted, which led to her move to The Virginian Retirement Community. Despite physical limitations, she wasn’t done living. During her eight years there, she developed many friendships, participated enthusiastically in Parkinson’s Support Group, performed in the community chorus and was part of a Youtube Haka performance that received thousands of views. Performing Haka was such a powerful emotional experience for Barbara that she repeatedly expressed gratitude for being able to live long enough to discover it. During this time, she leaned into learning about the life journeys of others, including both staff and fellow residents, through which she continued her passion for understanding other cultures and perspectives. She also immensely enjoyed the opportunity to be celebrated in an NBC 7 news story for her 1968 participation in the Jeopardy! game show (which she proudly maintained was much more difficult under Art Fleming than in later eras!)

Barbara left this world at peace, having been able to express her love to family that were with her in her final days and who she cherished until the very end. She will be dearly missed.