Anyone who knew Lisa Barber couldn’t help but be drawn to her warmth.
Barber was a hairdresser who friends say had the ability to make everyone she met feel special and loved.
“When you spoke with her, you knew she was listening and knew she cared,” said Tara Lattanzi, one of Barber’s close friends. “We could be ourselves with her.”
Barber, 45, died May 24, nearly two weeks after she was hit by a car while crossing the street in the 3100 block of West Franklin Boulevard.
When Barber didn’t show up for work at Sine Qua Non Salons, 2038 W. Chicago Ave. in Ukrainian Village, her coworkers tried to find her. One coworker called Lisa Abinoja, another of Barber’s close friends. Abinoja said when she tracked Barber’s cellphone to Mount Sinai Hospital, she knew the situation was serious.
“It was clear that whatever happened was really bad,” said Abinoja.
On May 11, Barber had attended a friend’s fashion show. She had gotten off a CTA train and was walking to her home in Humboldt Park about 8 p.m. when a maroon car sped through the intersection and struck her, according to Chicago police. Barber fell off the hood of the vehicle and hit her head, suffering a brain injury, her friends said.
The car did not stop and police have not announced any arrests.
Friends said they were shocked by the news and are struggling to come to terms with her sudden loss.
Nearly a decade ago, Barber left a career in higher education to pursue hairdressing, a profession that allowed her to express her creativity while building connections with new people.
Barber joined Sine Qua Non Salons as she was finishing school and owner Laura Boton said she was the perfect fit. She got through the salon’s training program in less than a year and quickly became a popular stylist.
Boton said Barber was not only a talented hairdresser but also had a way of making clients who sat in her chair feel comfortable.
“She worked so hard,” said Boton. “She worked her butt off to get her chair. She was just a bright light and a beautiful person.”
Barber’s friends said she had an outgoing personality and “lived her life to the fullest.” She was an avid reader who enjoyed trivia, good cocktails and singing karaoke .
Though she lived alone, Barber loved spending time with her friends. She joined the salon’s book club and attended all the salon’s gatherings, said Boton.
Barber’s salon family honored her by gathering at Alice’s Lounge — one of her favorite karaoke bars — on May 31 and spent hours singing and dancing.
Lattanzi and Abinoja said they met Barber in middle school and have supported one another throughout the years. They said the best way to honor her memory is by living life like she did.
“I told her in the hospital that I’m gonna laugh more, I’m gonna live hard,” said Lattanzi. “She would want us to continue to live life to its absolute fullest, because that’s how she lived.”
Barber is one of at least four people killed in citywide hit-and-run incidents in May.
Last week, a 64-year-old woman was killed in a hit-and-run crash in South Shore. The 64-year-old was a passenger in an SUV traveling north in the 6900 block of South Stony Island Avenue around 2:40 a.m. A sedan traveling east collided with the SUV.