Memorial service will be Saturday, June 21, 2008; 10:00 A.M. at First Presbyterian Church with Pastor John Curtiss officiating. A reception will be held at the Hazelrigg Student Union on the Hastings College Campus, following the memorial service. Private family burial will be at a later date. Book signing will be Thursday, June 19, 2008; 8:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M., Friday, June 20, 2008; 8:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M. at the funeral home & Saturday, June 21, 2008; 1 hr. prior to service at the church. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorials be given to the Tamara Canfield Babcock Fund, at the Hastings Community Foundation Inc., 800 West 3rd Street Rm #232, Hastings, Nebraska, 68901.

Tam as was known to her friends in NPZA served the organization as recording secretary for the last six years. She was hired by former mayor Rick Sheehy in 2001 to serve as director of the newly-created Development Services Department. She replaced long-time city planner Harry Milligan, who worked for the city for more than 20 years.

When she was first hired, Sheehy, who is now Nebraska’s lieutenant governor, said Babcock jumped into a tough transition, in which she had to combine the former planning and zoning division with the building inspectors, who were previously in the engineering office. “She came into a difficult position,” he said this morning. “I put them all together to create development services. So she pioneered that for the city.”

City administrator Joe Patterson said the city was lucky to have Babcock fill the position with her past experiences. “She was well-versed, highly-educated and had great experience in other places,” he said. “We were fortunate to have her here when the position came about.”

Mrs. Babcock was born August 17, 1959 in Three Rivers, Michigan to Robert & Patricia (Harms) Canfield. She grew up in Leawood, Kansas and graduated from Shawnee Mission South High School in Overland Park, Kansas. On June 12, 1982, she married Robert S. Babcock in Overland Park. Mrs. Babcock graduated from Beloit College in Beloit, Wisconsin with Bachelor of Arts degrees in French and in Environmental Biology in 1981. She received her Masters of Environmental Policy degree in 1984 from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. From 1987-1992, she was Project Consultant for Woodward-Clyde in Santa Barbara, California. From 1992-1994, she taught Political Science at Hastings College. Since 2001, Mrs. Babcock served as the Director of Developmental Services for the City of Hastings. She served on YWCA Board of Directors, Ad-Hoc Committee for Hastings Public Schools and was involved with Leadership Hastings, Imagine Hastings and many other community organizations. She attended First Presbyterian Church.

Survivors include: Husband: Robert S. Babcock – Hastings, NE Children: Sara Gwenllian Babcock – Hastings, NE    Charles Robert ‘Carl’ Babcock – Hastings, NE Parents: Robert & Patricia Canfield – Leawood, KS Brothers & Spouses: Bob & Lisa Canfield – Overland Park, KS    Michael & Lori Canfield – Overland Park, KS    Back to Planning News