Barbara Joan Furan

Barbara Joan Furan (Howell) peacefully passed away on May 10th, 2026 at her home, Oak Terrace Assisted Living in North Mankato, Minnesota at the age of ninety-five. Born July 11, 1930, in Pasadena, California, Barbara was the third of four children, and the only daughter of Ronald (Doc) Howell and Ruth (Lamb) Howell. She grew up in the Pasadena/Monrovia area and enjoyed the mountains and gardens of the region, as well as the growth of city life. As a child she was an avid girl scout who liked to play hopscotch, jump rope and play hand-clapping games with her cousins and neighbors. As she grew older, she was a rather unwilling babysitter of family members, but undoubtably kept the children entertained with her creative imagination. As a teen she enjoyed joining her friends on the California beaches and attending camp in the San Jacinto Mountains near the town of Idyllwild.

Barbara lived during the Great Depression and survived the polio epidemic, which greatly impacted her family, despite this, she turned to her love of art and storytelling in order to cope with the many tragedies that befell her family and many others in those times. She would write long letters illustrated with chubby children and fat little forest creatures; she designed cards and documented events in her cartoonish, endearing style. In high school she wrote and illustrated articles for the school newspaper and was a favored student of the school art teacher. This creative outlet helped her survive the loss of siblings, the near death of her surviving brother, her parents' divorce and later remarriage to each other, as well as simply making life bearable in the prevalent economic poverty of the era. Everyday life provided plenty of fuel for story telling in her future, complete with stories of living in a tent, a shack, a goldmine and a boarding school for girls.

Barbara was fortunate to achieve some post-secondary education when she attended the prestigious Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles, California, while also working at the Hagen-Renaker and Will George ceramic companies painting figurines. It was while attending Chouinard's that Barbara met the handsome young man who was destined to become her husband, her partner in love, life and career, Rodney (Rod/Bud) Furan. 

The young artists were married in 1950, but shortly thereafter, Rodney returned to military service in Korea while Barbara stayed home and prepared for the birth of their first born, Eric. Many young women were left behind while their young men went to war, and Barbara found that period of her life to be especially lonely and difficult; when Rod was able to return home to keep her company and assist with the challenges of parenting, it came as a joyful relief. The birth of Eric was followed by Paul, then Neil, Ruth and finally Ron. Barbara's creative mindset and acerbic wit served her well as she moved from being a young frightened and inexperienced mother into the mom who sewed clothing, and stuffed toys, created outdoor play equipment, wrote and illustrated books, molded clay into magical creatures, created themed birthday parties, had puppet theaters built in the basement, took the family on hikes and camping trips and allowed salamanders into the house. She instilled in her children a love of beauty and nature, but drew the line at tarantulas and snakes.

During her early years as a wife and mother, Barbara discovered and joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She found much peace and enjoyment through her involvement with her church. She volunteered in a variety of roles through the years, and she met many people who became her closest friends in life. Many of these friends truly became her church family leaving her feeling blessed in those loving relationships. Through the church, she developed an interest in genealogy and spent much time discovering the history of her and her husband's families. She also enjoyed being in the women's group at church and, most of all, liked to study church readings and teach adult Sunday classes, as well as greeting church missionaries and providing them a place to relax and join the family for a meal or special occasion.

Art and creativity continued to be an important part of life for Barbara. While she was often known to brag about her husband's career as a professional artist and the various positions he held through the years, she was no less successful in her own artistic callings, often working from home as many artists do. Barbara had an eye for three-dimensional work, which resulted in her selling a number of patterns for stuffed animals to Singer; among these patterns was a mother duck that nestled her little one inside a pocket, an elephant and a crocodile pajama holder. Barbara was a gifted portrait painter and later in life showed great talent in her still-life work--presenting common household objects in robust color and realistic detail. Many of her paintings most favored by clients and family as well, were amusing depictions of small animals, or those exhibiting the curiosity and innocence of youth. She was also an illustrator of children's books, working mostly for educational publishing companies. Her own, unpublished books were a great source of entertainment to her children, grandchildren and others with stories such as Jim Pott's Pig who escaped his pen to eat all of Jim's donuts.

Barbara's marriage to Rod was one of her greatest delights in life, and she followed him from the West Coast to the Midwest and back again. In their early "retirement" period they enjoyed several years of New Mexico and Arizona sunshine, where they both discovered joy in Southwestern themed art before they returned to live their aging years in Minnesota. Together they enjoyed traveling to see friends and family, but they were also happy when home to simply spend time in each other's company and continue to be productive in their artistic lifestyle, rarely found without a paintbrush in hand. They were fortunate to be happily married for 71 years. 

Barbara is survived by her children: Eric Furan (partner Tom) Palm Springs, CA, Paul (Kathryn) Furan Sunnyside, WA, Ruth (Melvin Hayner) Furan Preston, MN, Ronald (Mary) Furan Albany, NY. She is also survived by two nieces who have been like daughters: Lori (Doug) Schultz and Lisa Furan, both of Mankato, MN. In addition, Barbara is survived by eleven grandchildren, Mariama Kamara, Emily Thompson, Lahai Kamara, Serah Kamara, Neil Furan, William Furan, Kurt Furan, René Furan, Lawrence Furan, Leon Furan, Rosalind Furan and their spouses & significant others; as well as many great grandchildren who were fortunate to know and love her.

Barbara was preceded in death by her parents and her three brothers, Tom (Bonnie), Howell, Robert "Bobby" Howell and Donald "Donnie" Howell, her son Neil Furan, son-in-law Patrik (Eric) Olson and by her husband Rodney Furan.

A funeral service will be held at 11:30 a.m., Friday, May 22, 2026 at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in North Mankato; visitation will precede the service, starting at 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. Burial will be at the Calvary Cemetery in Mankato following the service.