H. Douglas Barnshaw, Md

H. Douglas Barnshaw MD, Doug, died peacefully from amyloidosis of the heart on Friday, January 25, 2025. He is survived by his son Bob Barnshaw, daughter Susan Barnshaw, four grandchildren: Sabra, Coleman, Sam, and Anthony, his companion, Kathy Lovell, and brothers Jim and Bob. Doug graduated from Colgate University in1957 and was influenced by a number of his professors, including one that encouraged him to major in Philosophy & Religion, which proved to be transformational. Doug was strongly encouraged by his father to join his Ophthalmology practice and intended to do so as he entered University of Pennsylvania Medical School in 1961. However, his background in Philosophy and Religion led to his residency in Psychiatry at the Hospital of Pennsylvania in 1965. He married Elizabeth Ann Wright, Libby, in1959 and in 1966 the family left Philadelphia, PA for western adventures in Littleton, CO, Billings, MT and Colorado Springs, CO. Doug worked in small group practices in Littleton and Colorado Springs and was in private practice while in Billings. Out West, they all enjoyed trips into the mountains for skiing, camping, and hiking. The family moved to Longmeadow, MA in 1976. Doug worked at Baystate Medical Center for 25 years and then in community mental health and private practice before retiring in 2005. Libby and Doug took many trips around the world, including an annual trip to Key West, FL. Doug was an active member of the Springfield Unitarian Universalist Society of Greater Springfield and many community action organizations, including MA Senior Action, which voted him Volunteer of the Year in 2007, and Death with Dignity. Unfortunately, Libby came down with frontotemporal dementia and died in June 2012. Later that year, Doug met Kathy Lovell at a Climate Change committee meeting and began a relationship that continued until his death. They enjoyed playing bridge, golf, kayaking at Sandy Neck, spending the winter in Sedona, AZ hiking and watching sunsets, and traveling. Their last trip to Norway and Finland in 2019 gave Doug the opportunity to spend time with a beloved AFS student from Oslo. Doug came down with pneumonia in 2020, leaving him unable to travel and participate in the active life that Sedona offered. Fortunately, what was most important and enjoyable to him in life was his family and friends. In his writings, he shared that he led “a common, privileged, unique life”. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, June 14, 2025 at 10:00AM at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Greater Springfield, 245 Porter Lake Drive, Springfield, MA followed by burial in the Memorial Garden. New England Funeral & Cremation Center, 25 Mill Street, Springfield, MA has been entrusted with the arrangements. Please visit Dr. Barnshaw’s memorial page at www.nefcc.net for expressions of sympathy.