Barbara Colwell Martens, age 78, of Pawnee City, NE., died Thursday, December 2, 2010. A native Pawnee City, she was the daughter of the Ervin Barr and Verna Alberta Puls Colwell. Visitation with the family will be from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM Friday at Woodfin Memorial Chapel. A memorial service will take place at 5:30 PM during the visitation. Nanette Mathe will officiate. A family service will be held at a later date in Pawnee City, NE. Mrs. Martens is survived by her three sons and daughter in law, Eric (Susan) Martens of LaVergne, TN., Craig (Becky) Martens of Irvine, CA. and Doug Martens of Reseda, CA.; two grandchildren, Andy and William Martens of Irvine, CA.; and a sister and brother in law, Rebecca Colwell (Robert W. Schurr) Quarles of Alexandria, VA. Mrs. Martens was a student of spirituality. A loving mother and housewife, she received her Bachelors Degree from the University of Nebraska (Lincoln), and her Masters Degree and PhD (ABD) in Linguistics from Syracuse University. She was fluent in seven languages and was first employed with the National Security Agency as a Cryptologist during the Cold War. Later Mrs. Martens would become a Computer Programmer with the University of Nebraska and a substitute teacher with Omaha City Schools. Mrs. Martens was a proud member of the Daughters of the American Revolution (D.A.R.) and loved Genealogy and her Swiss heritage background. She was a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority and the P.E.O. womens charitable group. She was also the most loyal and die hard fan of the Nebraska Cornhuskers. WOODFIN MEMORIAL CHAPEL