OBITUARIES

Information for the obituaries and funeral notices below was supplied to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Advertising Department by funeral homes. For more information including cost and deadlines contact the advertising department at (501) 378-3889.

FORREST CITY — Mrs. Joyce Buford Sweet

age 72, of Forrest City, Arkansas died at the Washington Regional Hospice in Fayetteville, Arkansas on Saturday, March 10, 2018.

Mrs. Sweet was born June 21, 1945 in Memphis. She was the daughter of Claude Douglas Buford Sr. and Eleanor Davidson Buford. She had made her home in Forrest City all of her life where she was a member of the First United Methodist Church and served as office administrator for several years. Mrs. Sweet had been very active in the Junior Auxiliary, served on the board of the Forrest City Country Club and served as an advisor to the Delta Beta Sigma Sorority.

Mrs. Sweet is survived by a daughter, Missy Sweet Tiller and husband Tommy of Fayetteville; a son Douglas Sweet and wife Molly of Collierville, Tennessee; a brother C. Douglas Buford of Little Rock; two sisters Betty Jo Eldridge of Marietta, Georgia and Margaret Cogdell of Charlotte, North Carolina. Four grandchildren also survive her, Alex and Ellie Tiller and Charlie and Meg Sweet. A cousin who she traveled with, Alice Schwartz of Estes Park, Colorado also survives her.

Funeral services will be Tuesday, March 13, 2018 at 11 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church in Forrest City; burial will follow at Forrest Park Cemetery. Visit online registry at stevensfuneral home.net. The family request memorials be made to the Church or to the Rockefeller Cancer Institute at UAMS.

CASSVILLE, Mo. —

Barbara Diane Cowan,

age 64, of Cassville, Missouri, passed away Thursday, March 8, 2018 at Mercy Hospital in Rogers.

She was born December 28, 1953 in Denison, Texas, the daughter of William Archie and Norma Jean (Fricks) Curtis. On March 24, 1972 in Muskogee, Oklahoma, Barbara was united in marriage to Ronny Cowan, who survives. Also surviving are three daughters, Hayley Fraser and her husband Ryan and their son, Macauley Fraser of

Springfield, Missouri, Lindsay Johns of Springfield, and Lane Teel and her husband Derek of Kansas City, Kansas; three sisters, Phyllis Fryar and her husband Gene Allen of Ardmore, Oklahoma, Debbie James and her husband Jerry of Muskogee, Oklahoma, and Karen Stark and her husband Monty of Tallahassee, Florida; one niece and ten nephews.

Preceding her in death were her parents.

Barbara grew up in Muskogee, Oklahoma, where she was a member of the West Side Church of Christ. She attended Longfellow Elementary and West Junior High and graduated from Muskogee High School in 1972. In 1984 she and Ronny moved their family to Cassville, Missouri, where Barbara worked as a secretary in the counselors’ office at Cassville High School and later in the Eunice Thomas Elementary office. In 2002 she and Ronny moved to Rogers, where for many years Barbara helped Ronny run Green Valley Bible Camp. In 2012 Ronny and Barbara returned to Cassville, the place that had always felt like home to them. Barbara was always genuinely interested in other people, and no matter where she lived or where she was, she made people feel comfortable and welcome and special. Barbara was a member of Mill Street Church of Christ in Cassville and loved her church family and her Ladies Bible Class. Barbara enjoyed camping and canoeing with her sister Debbie and was a member of Sisters on the Fly. She also enjoyed reading and learning more about her family’s genealogy. Barbara and Ronny loved to go on drives and “adventures” together. She was a member of the Barry County Master Gardeners and the Barry County Historical Society. Her family was her greatest joy in life. She and Ronny spent 46 happy years together and raised their three girls, and Barbara so enjoyed being part of the lives each of them had made for themselves. She especially delighted in spending time with her grandson, Macauley.

Services will be held at 10 a.m. Monday, March 12, 2018 at Mill Street Church of Christ in Cassville, under the direction of Fohn Funeral Home in Cassville. Ken West will conduct the services. Burial will be at Horner Cemetery in Cassville.

The family will receive friends from 3 until 5 p.m. Sunday at Mill Street Church of Christ.

Contributions may be made to Barry County Master Gardeners in memory of Barbara.

Visit www.fohnfuneral home.com for online obituaries, guestbook and private condolences.