Barbara Owens

Barbara Owens, 81, died Nov. 27 at Granite Rehabilitation and Wellness in Cheyenne.
Born Barbara Joan Boesel on Dec. 23, 1935, in Cheyenne to Dr. and Mrs. Reuben J. and Marion A. Boesel, she began studying piano at age 3. A short time later she also began taking violin lessons. This served her well, and she became a professional musician.
She graduated from Cheyenne High School in 1953, and earned her bachelor’s degree in music at the University of Colorado in 1957 and her master’s in music in 1961. Her music studies also included Colorado State University, Denver University and in Cleveland, Ohio, where she served as concertmaster of the Cleveland Women’s Orchestra.
In the spring of 1961 she married Ronald L. Owens, a clarinetist. The couple had three children. They divorced in 1968.
During the 1960s, Barbara was a violinist in the Denver Symphony, the Brico Symphony, and others. She also played as a soloist with the Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra. In addition, she performed at various engagements throughout central Colorado, including concerts at the Central City Opera House and Red Rocks Amphitheatre. She earned her master’s degree in music education and taught in the Denver Public Schools.
Barbara moved her family to Cheyenne in 1971 and became a member of the Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra, and began teaching music in Laramie County School District No. 1. She retired from LCSD No.1 in 1988.
Barbara served as concertmaster of the Cheyenne Symphony Orchestra from the late 1970s thru 1987. She also commuted to Fort Collins and Greeley, Colo., to perform concerts with those respective symphonies. She continued performing with the Cheyenne Symphony until her retirement in 2011. The next year she retired from teaching private violin lessons, which she had done all throughout her professional career, along with playing for various private engagements.
She was a deaconess at First Congregational Church.
Survivors include her daughter and son-in-law, Corryne and Kerry Drake of Casper; two sons, Charles Owens of Aurora, Colo., and Clayton L. Owens of Cheyenne; one grandson, Dylan Drake of Fort Collins, Colo., one sister, Jeanne Sills of Colorado; and two nieces and two nephews. A memorial service for Barbara Owens will be held Tuesday, Dec. 12, at 2 p.m. at Wiederspahn-Radomsky Chapel of the Chimes in Cheyenne. Reception will follow at First Congregational Church.