Barbara M. Lee of the Shinnecock Nation died peacefully on December 21, 2023 in Stamford, Connecticut. She was 88.
She was born on November 24, 1935, in Southampton to the late Ferdinand Lee Sr. and Esther Mae Beaman Lee. She was a member of the Shinnecock Nation of Southampton. In the early 1960s, she relocated to Stamford, where she raised her three daughters and met her life partner, James W. Davis Sr.
Affectionately called “Babs” by her daughters and partner, she worked in many different industries before tapping into her entrepreneurial spirit and becoming a licensed daycare provider, her most rewarding work. She loved children and babies, and for many years took care of children establishing lifelong relationships with those she cared for and their parents. She loved to cook, travel and read, and every day strove to learn new things, her family said.
She was predeceased by her daughters, Daryl I. Lee and Valerie D. Lee; and her life partner, James W. Davis Sr.
She is survived by her daughter Brenda M. Lee; sister Florence C. Etheridge; sister-in-law Thelma Lee; James Davis’s children, James W. Davis Jr., Jennifer (Paul) Davis and Jeffery (Martha) Davis; along with numerous nieces, nephews and friends.
A funeral service will be held on Saturday, May 4, at 11 a.m. at the Brockett Funeral Home in Southampton. Interment to follow at Shinnecock Cemetery.