Ms. Barbara Arlene Smith Lewellen, age 91, entered this life on May 23, 1934, in Fulton, NY. She passed away June 28, 2025, of heart disease at St. Thomas Rutherford in Murfreesboro, TN. After her marriage to the late Leroy Lewellen in March 1954, they began traveling with the US Army to Hawaii, Germany, Georgia, and North Carolina. They settled in Antioch, TN in 1964. Ms. Lewellen worked as a secretary for American Battery until her retirement in 2006, and while working obtained her GED. She moved to Fayetteville in November 2024 and sold her house in May 2025.

Barbara was a woman with a big heart who loved people, and many of her children’s friends called her mom. She loved to cook, sew, and she was a master in ceramics.

Survivors include her daughters, Deborah (Thomas) Barnes, Abby Lewellen (Mark) Peden; son, Lonnie Lewellen; grandchildren, Michael Shoemake, Jr. and Matthew (Melissa) Barnes; great grandchildren, Brayden Barnes and Boone Shoemake; sister, Sandy Durham of Leoma, TN. In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her parents, Arnold Lee Smith and Bernice Lil Gilmore Smith; sons, Mark Lewellen and Guy Lewellen; and brothers, Billy Smith and Gene Smith.

Ms. Lewellen’s remains, along with those of her son Guy, will be placed with her late husband in Ripley, MS at a later date.

The family will host a celebration of life at a later date.

Higgins Funeral Home is honored to serve the family of Barbara Arlene Smith Lewellen.