Obituary: Madelin Jones Barratt (1954-2023)

Madelin Jones Barratt (Age 69)
Memorial service info

Madelin Jones Barratt, 69, of Falls Church, Va., passed away peacefully at home on September 29, 2023 of mesothelioma.

Madelin was born in 1954 in Houston, Texas to C.M.C. Jones, Jr. and Jacquelin Jones. Her father was a Marine Corps officer and the Jones family was stationed in several locations around the United States during Madelin’s childhood, including Annapolis, Md., Quantico, Va., Pearl Harbor, and Camp Lejeune, N.C. After graduating from Lejeune High School, where she was a captain of the cheerleading squad, Madelin attended Mary Washington College in Fredericksburg, Va., where she received a bachelor’s degree in music in 1976.

Not long into her career as an elementary school music teacher in Loudoun County, Va., Madelin’s mother introduced her to Henry D. Barratt, Jr. Madelin and Henry were married in June 1978. They raised three children and enjoyed 45 years of marriage. With visible delight Madelin unified her family and guests with song, artfully playing the piano or strumming the ukulele in lively accompaniment.

Madelin was an active member of The Falls Church Anglican in Falls Church, Va., where she served as a volunteer with the women’s ministry, as a Sunday school teacher, and with the children’s choir. She also volunteered her time as a music teacher at Rivendell School in Arlington, Va., for almost 20 years. Madelin was known as a welcoming presence in her neighborhood and at church. She was an accomplished seamstress who made and mended clothes for herself and her family. Madelin loved chocolate and covered the cabinets of the kitchen in her college residence with empty M&Ms bags.

After being diagnosed with mesothelioma in 2019, Madelin faced her illness with courage founded on her faith in Jesus Christ. She was grateful for the compassionate treatment she received at Georgetown University Hospital and at the National Institutes of Health, where she participated in a clinical trial that extended her life on this earth and provided encouraging results for further research into new treatments.

Madelin was preceded in death by her parents. She is survived by her husband, Henry; her son, William and his wife Susanna; daughter Ellen Schooley and her husband Andrew; daughter Anna Barratt and her husband Abel Ferreira Mendes; sisters Martha and Molly Jones; and grandchildren Constance and Virginia Barratt, and Timothy, Margaret, Evelyn, and Isaac Schooley.

A memorial service will be held on Oct. 10, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. at The Falls Church Anglican, 6565 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church, Va., 22042.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Madelin’s memory may be made to Comunidad, a charity serving children and adults in the Falls Church area through education and leadership training (https://www.comunidadva.org/donate).

>> Donation link

The following memorial event is planned.

Memorial Service
10/10/2023 02:00 PM to 03:30 PM
The Falls Church Anglican
6565 Arlington Blvd
Falls Church, Virginia 22042