Barbara Bunn McCullough PhD

April 22, 1951 - March 2, 2025

A heart that shined with kindness, generosity, and love has stopped.

Barbara received her doctorate in organizational psychology from the Wright Institute in 1995. She was the CEO of Brighter Beginnings for 30 years, expanding her beloved nonprofit from a social welfare organization to a Federally Qualified Health Care Center. Beginning in the late 1970s, with the founding of Karibu House in Sonoma County, now known as Community Support Networks, she devoted her life to caring for disadvantaged and vulnerable communities, with a special focus on children and families. No matter the responsibility, big or small, Barbara always did her best. And her best was more than good enough for her colleagues, friends, and family.

Originally from Oklahoma, Barbara came to California to enroll in college, always feeling a deep call to be of service. She met her husband, Stuart McCullough, in the early 1980s, where they discovered a shared passion for uplifting communities through nonprofit leadership. Celebrating 38 years of marriage, they built a life filled with love, compassion, family and a deep devotion to serving others.

Barbara was most in her element when she joined a child on the floor, delighting in their newfound friend and exploring whatever was of most interest to them. It was always magical.

She was an explorer at heart, never wanting to visit the same place twice. She climbed to the top of Skellig Michael, searched for leprechauns in the bogs of Ireland, spent a week in the honeymoon suite on a traditional junk boat in Halong Bay, Vietnam, explored the Minoan civilization ruins in Crete, visited most major European capitals, explored the Galapagos Islands, fished for piranhas in the deepest Ecuadorian jungle, and hiked all over Machu Picchu. Her favorite hikes were on the trails of Sedona and the Martinez Waterfront Park, often joined by her husband of 38 years, Stuart, making him the luckiest man in the world.

Barbara is survived by her husband Stuart, her son Noah, her daughter Nova, her stepdaughter Katrina, her sisters Karen and Vicki, her brother Jim, seven beloved grandchildren, and a multitude of in-laws, extended family and friends - all who loved her dearly.

“Kindness” by Naomi Shihab Nye.  

"Before you really know what kindness is,

You must lose things,

Feel the future dissolve in a moment

Like salt in a weakened broth.

Before you know that kindness is the deepest thing inside,

You must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.

You must wake up to the sorrow,

You must speak to it till your voice

Catches the threads of all sorrows

And you see the size of the cloth.

Then only kindness makes sense anymore."

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that a donation be made to Brighter Beginnings, The Martinez Community Foundation, Youth Homes, or the charity of your choice.

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