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Apr 28th, 1936 - Nov 22nd, 2023Funeral: 2 p.m. on Sunday, December 17, 2023, at Frank & Bright Funeral Home in Flora
Visitation: 1 until 2 p.m. on Sunday at the funeral home
Interment: Odd Fellows Cemetery, Xenia, with the presentation of military funeral honors
Command Sergeant Major Dixon S. Barfield, U.S. Army (Retired), age 87, a proud veteran of the U.S. Army passed away the morning of November 22, 2023, in Idar-Oberstein, Germany, following a lengthy battle with Parkinson’s Disease.
He was born April 28, 1936, to Levy and Dorcas Barfield. Dixon grew up in Lumberton, N.C., where following high school at age 17, he joined the service with his parents’ signature of consent. He married Linda (Spicer) Barfield in Xenia, Illinois, on June 9, 1957. They enjoyed 66 ½ years of marriage. Having lived 49 of those 66 years in Germany they remained there in retirement in 2009.
Dixon served 30 years in the Army and following retirement did not feel his service was complete, therefore he spent the next 20 years teaching at the New York Military Academy and completed his teaching in Germany heading the ROTC Program in Baumholder. He valued his service highly and attained the rank of Command Sergeant Major. He served in Korea, Vietnam, and earned the Legion of Merit Award and Bronze Stars with oak leaf cluster.
Following his second retirement from serving, Dixon was happiest working in his garden and caring for his flowers. His diagnosis of Parkinson’s in 2004 didn’t stop his work of tending to the many varieties of roses. He was a great history buff, a collector of stamps and antiques, and was a proud owner of a 51-year-old Mercedes convertible.
CSM Barfield is survived by his loving wife, Linda, sisters-in-law, Lulu Mae Rascher and Betty (Gene) Pieplow, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. Other survivors include special friends, the best neighbor in the world, Martin Sowiak and his German grandson Tim Dalheimer, who always took him for a ride in his “oldtimer” convertible.
He was preceded in death by his parents Levy and Dorcas Barfield, a brother Lanier and wife Pauline Barfield, sister Carolyn Barfield-Chaldy, parents-in-law, Fawn and Leland Spicer, and a brother-in-law, Roy Rascher.
A funeral ceremony honoring the life of CSM Barfield will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, December 17, 2023, at Frank & Bright Funeral Home in Flora. Interment will follow in Odd Fellows Cemetery, Xenia, with the presentation of military funeral honors. A visitation will be held from 1 until 2 p.m. on Sunday at the funeral home. To share a condolence or memory, visit: www.frankandbright.com
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Thank you for your service! 🇺🇸
I remember Dixon well. He was a kind and interesting man. I had not lived in the Xenia area, very long, when I met him and his lovely wife, Linda. I loved hearing his stories about life in Germany. I shared with them, a love of all things old, and they invited me to their home above the store, to see their many antiques. Their's was a life well lived.
Thank You for you service!!
"We are all here for a micro instant. We don’t fret about the eternity which preceded us, and we obsess about the eternity to follow. Yet, in the 4fh dimension of time, each moment is also an eternity. For us, mere mortals, the shame is when we waste those moments, as the sum total reverberates forever, happy or sad, as it emanated from the beginning. It is not how long we live which matters, but rather how we live." On behalf of myself, the family of the New York Military Academy, and his many friends, alumni, instructors, and admirers, I would like to extend our deepest condolences on your loss. Dixon was revered by his peers, especially his students at the academy, , and earned lifelong respect and admiration of all whom encountered him. His undying support, guidance, and friendship was akin to a lantern in the night. May you be comforted, as we will be, with fond memories of his service and friendship. Respectfully, Jack Serafin NYMA Class of 1966 President, Regiment of Graduates
Rest in Peace Warrior
CSM Barfield was an inspiration to many JROTC cadets at Baumholder, including me. He was a great leader, teacher, and mentor.
Frank & Bright Funeral Home
and Cremation Services
500 North Main Street
Flora, Illinois 62839
Phone : (618) 662-2141
Fax: (618) 662-4600
Email: [email protected]
