Barbara C. (Cash) Lorge

PAXTON - Barbara Cash Lorge, a beloved mother, sister, grandmother, aunt, cousin, teacher, and friend, died in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on January 27. She was 76.Barbara was born on September 3, 1941, in Batavia, New York, to Virginia V. Cash and Ralph W. Cash. She graduated from Pittsford Central School in 1959 and received a bachelor of arts from Wells College in Aurora, New York, in 1963. In 1964, she earned a master’s degree in education from Boston University.Early in her career, Barbara taught social studies at Hingham South Junior High School in Massachusetts and at the Royal Air Force base in Wethersfield, England, where she met her husband, Benjamin Lorge, a former captain in the U.S. Air Force. After marrying in 1969, they lived abroad in England and in Zaragoza, Spain, until 1971, when they returned to the U.S. and settled in Paxton. Barbara dedicated herself to raising their three children while Ben taught and was a guidance counselor at West Boylston High School. He died in 1987. After her husband’s death, Barbara returned to the classroom full-time and taught for 12 years at Quabbin Regional High School in Barre, Massachusetts. She retired as chairperson of the social studies department in 2000. From 2000 to 2004, she was the director of the nursery school at the First Congregational Church of Holden.During the 40 years she lived in Paxton, Barbara was a deacon at the First Congregational Church of Paxton, president of the Paxton Democrats Club, and a member of the Paxton school committee. She was also an avid gardener, reader, skier, international traveler, NPR listener, and Red Sox fan. Even after a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, she continued to live bravely and fully in her final years, enjoying her family and making new friends wherever she went. She is survived by her children, Daniel Lorge, and his wife, Anna Baldassare, of New York; Sarah Lorge Butler and her husband, Charles Butler, of Eugene, Oregon; and Abigail Lorge and her husband, Seth Abbey, of Fairfield, Connecticut; grandchildren Leah Butler, Benjamin Butler, Eliza Abbey, and Louisa Lorge; a brother, William Cash and his wife, Joyce, of Naples, Florida; and several brothers- and sisters-in-law, nieces and nephews. A memorial service will be held at the First Congregational Church of Paxton, 1 Church Street, Paxton, on Saturday, February 3, at 2 p.m.; all are welcome. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Camp Putnam (campputnam.org), a favorite cause of Barbara’s. Donations may also be made to the Benjamin P. Lorge Memorial Scholarship, West Boylston High School, 125 Crescent Street, West Boylston, MA, 01583.  Arrangements are under the Care of Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main Street in Holden.  To share a memory or offer an online condolence visit our "Guest Book" here on this page.


PAXTON - Barbara Cash Lorge, a beloved mother, sister, grandmother, aunt, cousin, teacher, and friend, died in Allentown, Pennsylvania, on January 27. She was 76.Barbara was born on September 3, 1941, in Batavia, New York, to Virginia V. Cash and Ralph W. Cash. She graduated from Pittsford Central School in 1959 and received a bachelor of arts from Wells College in Aurora, New York, in 1963. In 1964, she earned a master’s degree in education from Boston University.Early in her career, Barbara taught social studies at Hingham South Junior High School in Massachusetts and at the Royal Air Force base in Wethersfield, England, where she met her husband, Benjamin Lorge, a former captain in the U.S. Air Force. After marrying in 1969, they lived abroad in England and in Zaragoza, Spain, until 1971, when they returned to the U.S. and settled in Paxton. Barbara dedicated herself to raising their three children while Ben taught and was a guidance counselor at West Boylston High School. He died in 1987. After her husband’s death, Barbara returned to the classroom full-time and taught for 12 years at Quabbin Regional High School in Barre, Massachusetts. She retired as chairperson of the social studies department in 2000. From 2000 to 2004, she was the director of the nursery school at the First Congregational Church of Holden.During the 40 years she lived in Paxton, Barbara was a deacon at the First Congregational Church of Paxton, president of the Paxton Democrats Club, and a member of the Paxton school committee. She was also an avid gardener, reader, skier, international traveler, NPR listener, and Red Sox fan. Even after a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, she continued to live bravely and fully in her final years, enjoying her family and making new friends wherever she went. She is survived by her children, Daniel Lorge, and his wife, Anna Baldassare, of New York; Sarah Lorge Butler and her husband, Charles Butler, of Eugene, Oregon; and Abigail Lorge and her husband, Seth Abbey, of Fairfield, Connecticut; grandchildren Leah Butler, Benjamin Butler, Eliza Abbey, and Louisa Lorge; a brother, William Cash and his wife, Joyce, of Naples, Florida; and several brothers- and sisters-in-law, nieces and nephews. A memorial service will be held at the First Congregational Church of Paxton, 1 Church Street, Paxton, on Saturday, February 3, at 2 p.m.; all are welcome. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Camp Putnam (campputnam.org), a favorite cause of Barbara’s. Donations may also be made to the Benjamin P. Lorge Memorial Scholarship, West Boylston High School, 125 Crescent Street, West Boylston, MA, 01583.  Arrangements are under the Care of Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main Street in Holden.  To share a memory or offer an online condolence visit our "Guest Book" here on this page.