Martha Oliver Barfoot

Martha Oliver Barfoot, 91, of The Fairfax Retirement Community, died on December 18, 2025, after complications from a hip fracture. Mrs. Barfoot graduated from Newcomb College at Tulane University in 1955 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, with an emphasis in sculpture. The day after graduation, she married her college sweetheart, Charles Bernard “Bernie” Barfoot, who graduated alongside her and was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Navy. They honeymooned while driving from New Orleans to Norfolk, Virginia, where Bernie reported for active duty. As a Navy wife, Mrs. Barfoot embraced both adventure and service. She worked as a middle school art teacher in the Norfolk and Annapolis public school systems. During a two-year tour of duty in Japan, she taught English to the wives of Japanese naval officers. During another two-year tour in London, England, she volunteered as church secretary at their parish there. Upon settling in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1962, Mrs. Barfoot became deeply rooted at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, where she served for more than forty years as an active member, volunteer, and church secretary. Since 2010, she had been a member of the Anglican Church in North America. An artist throughout her life, Mrs. Barfoot found joy in pottery and sculpture, as well as in travel, jitterbug dancing, cats, flower arranging, and reading fiction. A native of New Orleans, Louisiana, she retained a lifelong love of red beans and rice and Café du Monde coffee. In her final year, she created an online art gallery to showcase her artwork and treasured collections from around the world: www.marthabarfoot.org. Mrs. Barfoot was married to Bernie for 61 years until his death in December 2016. She is survived by her daughter, the Reverend Canon Dr. Alison L. Barfoot, an Anglican priest and missionary based in Kampala, Uganda. A funeral service will be held on January 7, 2026, at 2:00 p.m., at The Fairfax Retirement Community, located at the corner of U.S. Route 1 and Telegraph Road. Family visitation will immediately follow the service. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Mrs. Barfoot’s memory may be made to the Educational Scholarship Fund of Global Mobilization Ministries, her daughter’s nonprofit mission organization. Through these gifts, deserving Ugandan children will receive the opportunity of an education. Contributions may be sent to Global Mobilization Ministries, 9435 Lorton Market Street, #721, Lorton, VA 22079, or made online at www.globalmm.org.

Tributes

Martha Oliver Barfoot

October 27, 1934 - December 18, 2025