MARY ELLA (SHELTON) BARBER VALPARAISO, IN Mary Ella (Shelton) Barber, age 91, of Valparaiso, IN, passed away in the memory care unit of Rittenhouse Village of Valparaiso on November 12, 2016. Mary Ella was born on February 19, 1925, in Bynum, Texas, to Elzie Alpine Shelton and Octie (Pierce) Shelton. She grew up in Atchison, Kansas, and graduated from Atchison High School in 1943. She received her bachelor's degree from Kansas University in 1946 and her master's degree from Valparaiso University in 1964. Mary Ella married Herbert Hazard Barber, Jr. on July 9, 1944, and they remained married until his death on November 2nd of this year. After his death, her own health failed. She was unable to attend his memorial service, and in fact died while it was actually taking place. Herb joined Mary Ella at the University of Kansas when he returned from WW II, and Mary Ella taught high school English in nearby McLouth, KS, while Herb got his master's degree. She and Herb moved to Texas in in 1961. They lived in Valparaiso from 1961 until their deaths. Mary Ella taught various grades in the LaMarque, TX, area before becoming a stay-at-home mom. She resumed teaching in 1965, teaching English at Wheeler High School. She moved to Portage High School in 1967 and was head of the Portage High English department when she retired in 1985. Mary Ella was a member of AAUW, Delta Kappa Gamma, PEO, the Porter County Retired Teachers Association, the First United Methodist Church of Valparaiso, and Phi Beta Kappa. She loved her teacher friends and students, reading, theater, playing bridge, and socializing with her many friends. Mary Ella and Herb traveled extensively and participated in a number of Elderhostel programs around the world. Mary Ella was preceded in death by her parents, her sister Joyce Faye (Shelton) Rice, and her husband Herb. She is survived by her sons: Jeff Barber and Andy Barber, their spouses Carl Smith and Mary Ellen Kazimer, and numerous nieces, nephews, and other relatives. A memorial visitation with refreshments will be held Thursday, November 17, 2016 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at Moeller Funeral Home, 104 Roosevelt Rd. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Mary Ella's honor to a .