Following is an obituary for Barbara Ann Robertson Campbell, who died Saturday at the age of 63:
Barbara was born on Aug. 26, 1950, in Harlem, N.Y., to Vernon Robertson and Emily Cables. Her family moved during her formative years, and she attended both New Haven and West Haven public schools. After raising her children, Barbara went back to school to obtain her Bachelor’s degree from Albertus Magnus College. Barbara loved the Lord and was a dedicated member of St. Paul Union AME Church, where she served on the Steward Board.
Barbara loved knitting and crocheting. When she was not making blankets, scarfs and other crafts, she was reading and was a mainstay at the New Haven Public Library.
Barbara brought her talents and skills to bear in 30 years of service at Yale University, beginning in University Career Services and then the Yale Law School, where she worked in placement and student services. In 1996, she began nearly two decades of work on behalf of Yale’s renewed and expanded engagement with its neighbors in New Haven, Barbara’s own beloved community. She was one of the longest-serving staff in Yale’s Office of New Haven and State Affairs, where she supported extensive array of projects — from the Yale Homebuyer Program to the President’s Public Service Fellowship; the establishment of the Dixwell Yale Community Learning Center and the growth of public school partnership programs in every neighborhood.
She was a rock and foundation of the office, a key keeper of its institutional memory, and a two-way ambassador — for Yalies to get to know New Haven better, and for New Haveners to engage more fully with Yale. She helped transform the relationship of university and city from one of “either/or” to “both/and” by her professional work and her personal example. She was of New Haven and of Yale, both, and she helped make countless numbers of people comfortable in both. Never one to suffer fools gladly, Barbara at the same time treated all people well, from custodians to deans, students to tenured professors, community activists to corporate presidents. She could organize, administrate, order, budget, edit, and direct — but, as importantly, she could smile, laugh, hug, comfort the stranger, and support her colleagues. She touched many lives in her 30 years at Yale and contributed mightily to a stronger New Haven.
She leaves to mourn, her devoted children: Erik Christopher Johnson and Michelle Elizabeth Mitchell; two granddaughters: Sydney Elise and Simone Alexandra Johnson. One daughter in law: Dawn Hawkins Johnson.
The Celebration of Life service will be held on Saturday, July 26, 2014. The family hour/viewing will begin at 9:00AM, with the service following immediately thereafter. All services will be at St. Paul Union AME Church, 1267 Chapel Street, New Haven, CT 06511.
