Barbara A. Dye
Montgomery Village, Md. – Barbara A. Dye. 90, died peacefully on Dec. 13, 2022, at Shady Grove Hospital.
She was born on March 19, 1932, in Anna, Illinois, the daughter of Thomas and Helen Meisenheimer, deceased.
Barbara had an interesting, varied, and for a time, secret life.
Shortly after graduation from high school she was interviewed by a recruiter from the Central Intelligence Agency, CIA. She accepted their offer and was trained by the CIA as a cryptographer.
In 1953, she was assigned to a very sensitive program in Germany and was the youngest woman ever assigned to such a program.
She was the sole cryptographer for the CIA team assisting the new German Intelligence Service. This was at the height of the Cold War and the threat of communist expansion into democratic Europe was a real threat.
Barbara was required to live under cover and many times had to travel behind the Iron Curtain under fictitious names.
In 1956, she returned to CIA headquarters and met her future husband, Louis E. Dye, also an CIA employee. They were married in 1959 and later assigned to a small town in Iran near the Russian border.
In Iran, while pregnant and alone, she survived the worst earthquake in the history of Iran. Later, she narrowly escaped a bloody street riot which threatened her and the new baby boy.
In 1964, Barbara resigned from the CIA to care for her family as they were assigned to programs in Florida and California. In 1971, the family moved to Montgomery County, Md., and Louis continued working for the CIA.
Barbara used her natural charm and intelligence to develop a career in real estate and was successful for 38 years.
She was also very active with the county regulatory associations. She served on the following County Board of Realtors committees: chairman of the Sales Award, Finance, Professional Standards and Grievance.
She was also active in the Montgomery County Heart and Cancer charities, helping to organize fund raising activities and events.
Barbara is survived by her husband, Louis E. Dye of Montgomery Village, Md.; her sister, Sandra of Alabama; sons Louis E. Dye III and his wife Mary of Germantown, Md., and Thomas P. Dye and his wife Cindy of Arley, Ala.; three grandchildren, Harrison, Connor and Shelby.
A service will be held at 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 6, 2023, at Boyds Presbyterian Church, 19901 White Ground Rd., in Boyds, Md. 20841, with Pastor Norma Russell officiating.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made in Barbara’s name to the American Cancer Society Inc., Montgomery County, Md., Chapter.