Barbara Zarrella Gilvard

Barbara Lou Zarrella Gilvard passed away on September 10, 2026, at the age of 87 after battling COPD for many years. She died peacefully with her family surrounding her.

Barbara was a proud Rhode Islander and Italian-American, born to Flora and Joseph Zarrella, who instilled a very strong Catholic faith that she carried with her throughout her life.

She graduated from Providence’s Mt. Pleasant High School in the mid-1950s, where she was a cheerleader. She was proud to have been voted “Friendliest” by her classmates, sharing that she always befriended students from all walks of life.

Always fascinated with television – which was just coming online – she found a job with WPRO-TV in Providence after graduation. There she met her husband, Raymond Gilvard, along with a group of other young pioneers in the industry who became lifelong friends.

The Gilvards moved to Maine in 1963 for a job at a CBS affiliate in Portland. They started a family with Pamela and Jacqueline. With her love of the ocean and with young children, the Maine years were very special to Barbara. She loved taking the girls to the beach and sitting on the rocks along the water in Cape Elizabeth.

In 1976, the family moved to Springfield, Missouri, for Ray’s job at KYTV-TV. Though an East Coaster at heart, Barbara learned to fit into the Midwestern town, and she enjoyed all the perks of the TV station, like the river float trips, traveling to Spain, going to NFL and MLB games, and attending broadcaster conventions.

The family would also take weeks-long annual camping trips to some of the most beautiful National Parks in the U.S. and Canada, and she road-tripped to Rhode Island nearly every summer.

Raymond passed away in 1982, when Barbara was just 43 years old. As a widow with two children, Barbara returned to work at KY3 herself, as a national sales coordinator. She stayed with that job until retiring in 1999 and moving to Colorado to be near her daughters. Although she loved the mountains, Barbara always stayed close to her New England roots.

Barbara was a devoted mother – and father – to Pam and Jacquie for her entire life. She was their biggest cheerleader, always interested in what they were doing and never stingy with her pride.

She showed the same devotion and love as a grandmother to her grandsons, Michael and Evan Jones, being one of their primary caretakers when each was a baby and following them lovingly throughout life. They were the light of her life, and “Gram” was their rock.

Barbara was also a surrogate mother and grandmother to so many kids – and adults. She loved to hold babies as much as she loved sharing a conversation and a gin and tonic with her daughters’ friends. Many of the neighborhood children grew up calling her “Grandma Barb.”

Barbara was a true patriot and loved her country and the Church. She was a member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Springfield and attended both St. Thomas More and Our Lady of Loreto Catholic churches after moving to Colorado. In the late stages of her illness when she could not attend Mass, she had the Eucharist brought to her home.

Barbara loved to learn. She read many books, and she was always up on her news from whatever media outlet. She taught herself a lot about technology, always having the latest iPad or Apple watch.

Mostly, Barbara faced adversity with grace. Despite being widowed at a young age, beating breast cancer, losing nearly everything in a fire, and battling COPD for more than 20 years, she always took joy and strength from the family she loved so dearly – and who dearly loved her.

Barbara is predeceased by her parents, Flora and Joseph Zarrella, and her husband, Raymond Gilvard. She is survived by her daughters, Pamela Gilvard Jones and Jacqueline Gilvard Landry; her grandsons, Michael and Evan Jones; her sons-in-law, Timothy Jones and Patrick Landry; her sister, Paula Principe; her brother, Arthur Zarrella; and her beloved nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to one of Barbara’s favorite charities: St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Tunnel to Towers Foundation.