Barbie takes over Barb's life, house, brings joy

by Mary Le Arneal
Published 3/4/26

Barbara Jean Wadzinski grew up in Dodge. In 1979 she married Jerry Soukup and they moved to the Morse Bluff area. In 1983 they moved to the Soukup Family Farm 2.5 miles south of Morse Bluff. In 1986, for her 30th birthday Barb’s mom Elizabeth gave her a Happy Birthday Barbie doll... thus starting a collection that now boast 455 Barbie dolls and innumerable books, games, Barbie toys, toy cars, Christmas ornaments, international dolls and more.

Barb Soukup shows one of her many Barbie dolls in her collection. Shelves are lined with boxes of dolls she has collected in the last 40 years.

“I thought that was so special,” Barb said. “I only had one Barbie growing up. I made her a teacher.”

Barb graduated from college and became a kindergarten teacher, retiring in 2013, and continued to add to her Barbie collection.

Husband Jerry and sons Jim and Matt have been supportive of her obsession. They even contributed to the collection on special occasions, sometimes as the recipient. Each boy got a Barbie in cap and gown for their high school graduation. When they got married, each son received a wedding Barbie.

Most of the dolls and other items have come from Barb’s skills as a shopper. She and friend JoAnn Johnson have been going to garage sales and auctions together for over 40 years, uncovering many of the Barbie finds.

“I found some at stores, but most have been garage sales or auctions,” Barb said.

She found a collector with 1,000 or more Barbies wanting to cut back and bought some from her.

Soukup’s collection includes (deep breath...) Barbie computers, books, “I love Lucy” Barbies, Harley Davidson Barbies, movie Barbies, (three different ones from Grease), Disney, Mary Poppins, Grace Kelly, Titanic, Bewitched, Betty and Veronica from the Archie comic books, farming Barbie, bee keeper Barbie, McDonald’s, Coke Barbies, Barbies with designer dresses on, dolls of the world, Barbie running for President (four times), military Barbies, North Bend cheerleader Barbie, a bird set of Barbies with bird feathers in their outfit, music boxes, Husker Barbie, career Barbies, original teacher Barbie, etc.

“You name it, there is a Barbie for it,” Barb said. “I was collecting the dolls of the world but decided there are too many countries, so I quit. My collection is in alphabetical order from (South) Africa to Viking.”

Barb has a line of teacher dolls through the decades that show how the styles changed, from dresses in the ‘60s to ripped jeans in the 2000s. There is also bathing suits through the decades going from a one-piece suit to a bikini.

“The original teacher Barbie did not have underwear on,” Barb said. “People thought that was terrible that a teacher would not have underwear on. So they painted white underwear on. Supposedly the ones without underwear are the original ones and worth more.”

There is a series of Barbies featuring clothing styles from different eras, starting with 1910.

Every five years Mattel issues a special anniversary doll, and Barb has them all.

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