Barbara Romey Obituary

Barbara A. Romey, 77, of Phenix City, AL passed away on Wednesday, February 4th with her loving family by her side.

A Celebration of Life will be held 3:00 PM, Monday, February 23, 2026 at Trinity Episcopal Church, 1130 1st. Ave. Columbus, GA 31901. The family will receive friends during the reception in the parish hall following the service according to McMullen Funeral Home and Crematory, 3874 Gentian Blvd. Columbus, GA 31907.

Barbara was born on September 29, 1948 in The Bronx, New York to the late William P. Sassmann and Rita McGinley Sassmann. She was a teacher for four decades; for the last twenty years of her career she directed the gifted program in the Phenix City school district, during which she earned an Educational Specialist degree in Gifted Education from the University of Alabama in 2000 and was named Most Outstanding Graduate Student in her program. Students from her program won honors and awards in national and international competitions, including National History Day, the Future Problem Solving Program International, and many others. Her own accomplishments were no less impressive; she was a National Board Certified Teacher in Adolescent and Young Adult Social Studies and History, and earned prestigious fellowships to study abroad with the American Federation of Teachers and the Korea Foundation, was named the Joseph B. Whitehead Educator of Distinction by the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation in 2002, the History Channel’s Outstanding History Educator of the Year in 2007, and received the Keith Frampton Memorial Award for outstanding coaching from FPSPI in 2009. Her students’ award-winning Community Problem Solving projects include the splash park and multiply-accessible playground in Phenix City, as well as the long-running Give Me Five volunteer program which has been adopted by other districts throughout the state. After her retirement, she joined the Columbus Academy for Lifelong Learning and served as chair of the Travel Committee, then as Vice-President and President. In her spare time, she enjoyed cooking, reading, and opera.

She is survived by her loving husband, Jim Romey of Phenix City, AL and daughter, Elizabeth Romey of Columbus, GA.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent to: Southern Poverty Law Center, PO Box 8952, Topeka, KS 66608-8952. (A link to their official donation form can be found here https://www.splcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/2025-mail-in-donation-form.pdf and donations can also be made at https://www.splcenter.org/support-us/.)