Barbara Ann Kotyk was born in St. Louis, Missouri on February 23, 1938, and passed away on January 5, 2023. She was the youngest of 10 children of which were 7 brothers - 5 born in Romania and 2 in America, and twin sisters both of whom died at birth.

While only 9 years old she met 12-year-old Jack Kotyk. And, even though he didn't know it at the time, they were destined to be married, and in fact they were married in her home in Bel Ridge, Missouri on November 10, 1956.

When only 11 years old she contracted and barely survived polio. She carried the effects of that disease in the form of severe curvatures of her spine that eventually crushed one of her lungs. In 1972 she underwent surgery to fuse her entire spine to stabilize it.

In 1961 missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints came to their house in St Louis, and after three years she joined the church along with Jack and her son, Dan. She often said this was the most important event of her life, influencing her words, actions, goals, belief, and faith for the rest of her life.

Barbara held several professional jobs during her life – pre-school teacher, real estate support staff, piano teacher, and others. However, there was one job that she always talked about and from which she had many funny stories – Sales Manager for World Book Encyclopedias in the Central Valley area of California.

In 1980 Jack took a position at the U.S Army base - Camp Darby, near Livorno, Italy, which began an important chapter of Barbara's life. During their time in Italy, she started the Young Woman's program in their branch and functioned as that President. Later she fulfilled a Stake Mission, and then as Temple workers in the Oakland Temple. They later filled a temple mission to the Frankfurt Temple in Frankfurt Germany, and then again as Family History Workers at the Family History Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.

As a result of her old-world parental upbringing and her world-wide experiences, in addition to English she studied and spoke fluent German, and some level of Italian, and traveled extensively throughout Europe and the Eastern-Block countries of the former Soviet Union, where she did family history research and visited family members, resulting in 6,800 names being submitted to the temple.

Barbara was born and raised in the Saint Louis, Missouri area, and lived there as a newlywed. They then moved to the Washington D.C. area, then Northern California, Italy, and eventually moved to Utah in 1998 to be closer to their children and grandchildren – first to Heber and then in 2008 to Lehi.

Barbara is survived by her husband, Jack Willis Kotyk, her four children, Daniel A. Kotyk, Nanette E. Fisher, Gregory S. Kotyk and DeNai C. Stephenson, 17 grandchildren and 26 great-grandchildren.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, January 14, 2023 at 11:00 AM in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Chapel located at 2161 West Gray's Drive, Lehi, Utah.  Interment will follow at the Lehi City Cemetery, 1100 North 400 East.