The Rev. Barbara Jean Kulcher died on February 20, 2024, at the age of 92 (1931–2024).
Barbara was born on June 26, 1931, in Winnipeg, Manitoba to James M. McClughan and Edna May McClughan. She was an only child and raised in the Anglican tradition. Her family frequently moved and for a while lived in a rural section of Ontario, Canada. Barbara did quite well in school, completed her high school education at a fundamentalist school in Saskatchewan (1948), and received her RN in psychiatric nursing in 1953.
She then took a position as the sole clinical person in an isolated power station in northern Manitoba. Over the years Barbara worked in orthopedics, obstetrics, and neurosurgery. She moved to Ontario with her husband and had four children before their separation.
While in Ontario, Barbara became active at the First Unitarian Hamilton, Ontario. She served the church, first as a church school director from (1965–1968) and then as a church administrator (1969–1974). As a church administrator, she served a key role in the life of the church as she bridged the gap between the departure of the minister Rev. Bob Hemstreet, and the development of the church into a dynamic fellowship. She worked closely with the church service committee to provide meaningful Sunday services which blended people from the church and the larger community with visiting UU ministers. She went beyond the role of administrator, initiated several groups in the church, and kept abreast with new RE developments.
Over years of growth and transformation into a warm, caring religious community, her function became more pastoral than administrative, and she was able to acknowledge her desire to serve as a minister. Unitarianism offered her a chance to grow, as she was exposed to an affirming, reconciling, religious experience. In 1979, she received her Master of Divinity from Bangor Theological Seminary.
Rev. Kulcher was ordained on September 28, 1980, by the First Unitarian Church of Hamilton, Ontario. From 1980 to 1981, she served the UU Congregation of Jamestown NY, and then spent her predominant years as a chaplain at the following institutions: Ontario Correctional Institute, ON; Huronia Regional Center, ON; Hamilton Wentworth, ON; Toronto Jail, ON; Hamilton Psychiatric Hospital, ON; and Brantford Jail, ON. In a newspaper
article (Hamilton Spectator) in 1985, she was quoted as stating the importance of “befriending the forgotten and offering words of grace and hope to the frightened and often lonely inmates.”
Rev. Kulcher was a strong supporter of the denomination. She was extensively involved with the Canadian Unitarian Council, St. Lawrence UU District, the UU Women’s Federation, and Unicamp of Ontario (1977).
Barbara was famous for her pies, specifically apple and lemon meringue. She was an avid reader, enjoying history, historical fiction, and science fiction. She was a prolific writer, who spent many hours revising and perfecting her heartfelt and deeply engaging papers, articles, and sermons. She greatly valued the act of saying kind or funny things to bring a smile to someone’s face.
Barbara is survived by and loved and remembered by her four children: David Kulcher, Lisa Kulcher-Heaney (Kieran Heaney), Laurie Kulcher, and Kelly Kulcher (Lori Kulcher); six grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.
A graveside service took place on Saturday, June 22, 2024, at the First Unitarian Church of Hamilton, 170 Dundurn St S, Hamilton, ON L8P 4K3, Canada.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to St. Peter’s Residence at Chedoke, 125 Redfern Ave, Hamilton, ON L9C 7W9, Canada.
Notes of condolences may be sent to lkheaney50@gmail.com.