Frederic “Ted” Norman Barker, 95, of Millsboro, Del., died on March 29, 2026, on what would have been his mother’s birthday. Born on May 28, 1930, in Needham, Mass., to Edgar and Dorothy Barker, Ted lived a long and deeply engaged life marked by curiosity, reinvention, and a love of family, history and the sea.
Ted is survived by his sister, Barbara Ann Murphy, and her husband, Charles Murphy, of California; his children, Brenda Egenlauf of Florida and husband Bill Egenlauf, Brad Barker of Delaware and wife Katherine, Barbara Barker of Florida, and Beth Barker-Hidalgo of Oregon and husband Carlos Hidalgo; his stepchildren, Alan Abare of Arizona and wife Susan, James Abare of Vermont and wife Michelle, and Paul Abare of North Carolina and wife Betsy; his nephews, Eric Murphy and wife Michelle of Nevada, Mark Murphy of California, and Blake Barker and wife Cheryl of Illinois; and his niece, Patricia Murphy of Florida; as well as 15 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by his first wife, Dorothy Marie Barker; his brother, David Blake Barker; later by his second wife, Marceline Barker; and by his stepson, Richard Abare.
Ted proudly served in the U.S. Navy, training at the Navy School of Music and serving aboard the USS Missouri during the Korean War era. After the Navy, he built a career in broadcasting in Vermont, where he worked in Burlington radio and helped bring the city’s first FM station to life. He later became an entrepreneur, first with the Motel Pierre in Colchester, Vt., and then with the Red Inn in Provincetown, Mass.
Above all, Ted loved sailing. He shared that love generously with his children, grandchildren, and other interested family and friends through the Provincetown Yacht Club and the Malletts Bay Boat Club in Vermont. He also had a lifelong passion for history and genealogy.
A celebration of life will be held on May 23, 2026, 10 a.m., at the Louisa Howard Chapel at Lakeview Cemetery in Burlington, with a reception to follow.