Doris Elaine Weaver Barger

If someone were to take a moment in an attempt to define Doris Elaine (Weaver) Barger’s life purpose, the conclusion could easily be “devoted homemaker.”  The description would be absolutely correct; however, the truth is, that her life went well beyond just making a home for her family.  Doris, a long-time resident of the Ward, AR community, died at the age of 89, January 11, 2024, with family nearby at Springhill Baptist Hospital in North Little Rock.

Doris was born in 1934 in Marsena, AR (a suburb of Snowball), and was the youngest of Grover and Winnie Weaver’s seven children.  Doris was the youngest by only a few minutes because her twin brother Darrell came first.  Doris grew up in the rural Ozark National Forrest Community and attended school in Snowball and graduated high school in Marshall, AR.  In 1955 Doris met Junior Lee (JL) Barger.  The two married in 1957 and moved to the Ward area to begin a family.  Over the following decades Doris and JL bought a tract of land near Ward where they built their family home and raised their children.  While JL worked to provide for his family, Doris ran the farm with at times 100 head of cattle and raised her four children.  In the 1980’s they bought a wholesale oil and gas company in Cabot that Doris ran with her twin brother for many years.  Doris always enjoyed having family to her home for holiday and special events.  Doris was a long-time member of the Ward First Baptist Church and an avid Razorback fan, attending many basketball and football games with JL.  In 1989, Doris and JL were blessed with the first of five grandchildren.  Her grandchildren gave Doris a new purpose and name: “Nanny” - a title she wore with pride.  In 2021, Doris was promoted to “G-Nanny” with the arrival of the first of her two great grandchildren. 

In her later years, Doris enjoyed being on her farm, riding through the pastures in her side-by-side, sitting on her “lanai” drinking coffee, and taking her dog to Sonic for an ice cream cone.  Even as recently as a few years ago, Doris could be found mowing her grass on her lawn tractor, but preferred a farm hand (daughter, son, or grandson) to handle that duty.  Doris would not shy away from a biblical or political debate but, if it wasn’t going her way, she would quip “I don’t want to talk about it.”

Doris was preceded in death by her parents, Grover and Winnie, her brothers, Clifton, who was killed in action in Europe during WWII, Clell, Gerald, and Darrell, her sister, Jorith Weaver Hensley, her beloved husband JL, daughter-in-law Lori, and many other family and friends.  Doris is survived by her only daughter Tina Lee McCall and her husband Todd; her sons Nicholas Alexis and his wife Lisa, Gerald Stephen and his wife Kay, and William Michael and his wife Amy.  While her children moved away for a part of their life, all returned to Ward.  As previously mentioned, Doris is survived by five grandchildren that were the light of her life:  Morgan Van Horn of Bedford, TX, Alex Barger of Ward, Christian McCall of Springdale, AR, Peyton Barger of Cabot, AR, and Hayes Barger of Beebe, AR, then two great grandchildren:  Nathan Van Horn and Essie Jean Barger.

In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in the memory of Doris Barger.

The family will be receiving family and friends at 1:00 p.m. Thursday, January 18, 2024, at the Ward First Baptist Church, with a Celebration of Life to follow at 2:00PM.  Burial will be in Meadowbrook Memorial Gardens.  Arrangements by Smith-Westbrook Funeral Home, 404 W. Dewitt Henry Dr., Beebe, AR  72012.