The world lost a true mensch. Barbara Wank passed away on January 12, 2022, at the age of 89. Diagnosed with cancer two years ago, she maintained her independent and active lifestyle until the end, enjoying visits from family and friends, tending flowers, doing crossword puzzles, cooking, driving in the county, and binge-watching Netflix. Death came peacefully after several days at a hospice in Mount Joy surrounded by her family.
Barbara Ann Wank (née Plotkin) was born in Brooklyn, New York, on September 28, 1932, the only child of immigrant Jewish parents from Russia. Her father, Samuel, was a self-made roofing and sheet-metal contractor, and her mother, Elsie, worked as a bookkeeper for a cosmetic company. After attending the city’s public schools, Barbara majored in French at Goucher College. She received a teaching certification from Teachers College and taught in New York public schools.
She met her life partner Solomon Wank on a blind date at Chock full o’ Nuts in 1953. They were introduced by a mutual friend who saw them as kindred spirits in their senses of humor and politics; they were the only people he knew who favored admitting “Red” China to the United Nations. Married in 1955, they moved to Lancaster in 1961 when Sol began teaching history at Franklin & Marshall College and were inseparable until he died on March 19, 2014.
Always eager to learn and help others, Barbara obtained a master’s degree in mental health from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in 1977 and established a therapy practice in Lancaster. She served on the boards of mental health organizations and did volunteer counseling at the Lancaster County Prison and elsewhere in the community. Other volunteer activities included serving as a clinic escort for Planned Parenthood and, until her cancer diagnosis, reading stories to students in the Carter & McRae Elementary School.
Her political activism was extensive. She worked tirelessly to elect progressive political candidates at all levels, beginning with door-to-door canvassing in the 1952 presidential campaign of Adlai Stevenson. She joined organizations, marches, and vigils—from civil rights and opposing the Vietnam War in the 1960s to the Women’s March and Black Lives Matter in the 2010s. She also participated in a women’s consciousness-raising group in the late 1960s, served as the Lancaster organizer of the Indo-China Peace Campaign in 1972, and donated generously to local and national charities and social justice organizations. Over the years, she expressed her political views in many letters to the editor in Lancaster newspapers, including, from 2016 on, dozens of witty limericks on Trump policies she found most egregious.
Her aesthetic sense was acute and wide-ranging. She and Solomon not only enthusiastically acquired art, but Barbara proved an accomplished artist herself. In particular, her ceramic sculptures earned rave reviews, first from friends and then from fellow artists and local galleries who featured her work. She founded The Gallery in the early 1970s, a pioneering contemporary craft store in Lancaster, and was happy to help family and friends with the designs and interior decorations of their homes.
Barbara’s love and energy radiated out from her family to her friends. Her children and grandchildren cherished their conversations and laughter with her. She was always willing to lend an ear when friends called in times of need. True and loyal, she was beloved for her keen observations, design ideas, and wonderful sense of humor. All felt a special connection with her.
She is survived by her children, David Wank and Sarah de Leon, and her grandchildren, Daniel de Leon and Alice and Tobias Ashiwa. While grieving our loss, we are gratified that her spirit lives on in the many people she touched. The family plans to hold an online celebration of her life in the near future. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to a local charity of your choice.
Cremation Services of Lancaster 717-273-6283