Obituary of Bob B. McFarland

Bob Baynard McFarland, professor emeritus of curriculum and instruction at Appalachian State University, 81, of Chapel Hill, died Jan. 30 at Duke Hospice at the Meadowlands in Hillsborough after a long illness. Born May 10, 1931, in Alexander Mills, he was the son of the late Arthur Leslie and Hattie Alice Baynard McFarland and a 1949 graduate of Cool Springs High School in Forest City. He earned a B.S. degree in English and physical education from Appalachian State Teachers College in 1952. He entered the U.S. Army, serving with the 101st Airborne Infantry and the 93rd Signal Corps during the Korean Conflict. McFarland received his M.A. degree in English and secondary education in 1958 from Appalachian and completed additional graduate work at Indiana University. He taught at Frank Ashley High School in Gastonia before joining the Appalachian faculty in 1961. He retired in 1993 after teaching for 31 years. McFarland was the last retiring Appalachian professor to have either studied with or served with the University's first four presidents and chancellors. McFarland was a long-time member of the First Presbyterian Church in Boone, where he was a deacon, elder and Sunday School teacher. He was an avid UNC Tar Heel fan and proud member of the Educational Foundation, Inc. He loved flowers and Big Band music. He was an excellent photographer, a crossword puzzle whiz and, in his younger days, enjoyed golf. He achieved the rare feat of a hole in one. Survivors include his son, Michael McFarland, and his wife, Jennifer, of Chapel Hill; his daughter, Jill Cook and her husband, Glenn, of Lorton, VA; grandchildren Elisabeth and Margaret McFarland of Chapel Hill, Katharine, Emma and Benjamin Cook of Lorton, Va., and Nicholas Cook of Greensboro; brother-in-law, Harold Mercer of Laurinburg; nephews John Mercer and his wife, Marilyn, of Winston-Salem; Scott Mercer and his wife, Le Ann of Myrtle Beach, S.C.; and niece, Alyce Mercer of High Point; as well as several other nieces, nephews, their spouses and children. His sister was the late Sybil Mercer of Laurinburg. He was the former husband of 44 years to the late Betty Ruth Hodges McFarland of Greensboro. A funeral service will be held Saturday, Feb. 9, at First Presbyterian Church in Boone at 11 a.m. with the Rev. Gerald Hodges, Bob's nephew, officiating. A graveside service will follow at Duncan's Creek Presbyterian Church cemetery near Ellenboro at 4 p.m. The family will receive friends informally after those services. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial contributions to First Presbyterian Church, 131 Big Valley St., Boone, N.C. 28607, or the charity of your choice. (Bob, a kind soul, for years supported many good causes to help children, other people in need and the Earth.) Online condolences may be shared with the family at www.austinandbarnesfuneralhome.com Austin & Barnes Funeral Home of Boone is serving the McFarland family.