Barbara Holding Court in the Schoolhouse, circa 1970s

On the left sits Trudy Carlyle—opera singer and dear friend of Barbara’s.

“I’d go in in the morning and Barbara would always be there. She’d always be the first one at the Centre and I’d say ‘Good morning Barbara, how are you?’ and Barbara’s response was always ‘Splendid! I’m just splendid!’ Always. I never heard anything else but that. And she could be half dead but she was always ‘Just splendid!’ […] She was just such a bright person.”
—Heather MacEwan Foran, friend and volunteer

Barbara Leighton in the Schoolhouse, circa 1970s. Credit: Leighton Art Centre Museum & Archives.