Buzz Barnes was a loving man. He was a loving husband, father, faithful Christian, proud combat veteran of the US Marine Corps, and a fun boy-scout leader for over 10 years. He loved to boat, camp and travel. He was an honorable, caring person and will be remembered with love by those who knew him. Buzz is survived by his loving family including: his wife Rosemary Jones-Barnes, 7 children (John, Mike, Harry, Kathy, Christine, Debbie and Connie) and by 15 grandchildren and 9 great grand children. Two of his sons, Patrick and Dale preceded him in death. Born July 20, 1927 the fifth of six siblings born to Harry C. Barnes, Sr. And Margaret Barnes. He attended Randolph Grade school and North Kansas City High School. Buzz graduated in 1945, joined the US Marine Corps for 4 years and was deployed to China, returning stateside in 1948. He was married on March 6, 1948 TO R. Pennington. They lived in Oceanside, CA for the rest of his tour of duty. In the base hospital, on April 15th of 1949, a son, John Edward Barnes was born. Between his two deployments, Buzz briefly attended the University of Kansas, living with his family in Sunflower Village. Buzz was called back to the Marines in 1949 from the inactive reserves to go to Korea, returning home in Nov 1950. A second son, Michael Wayne Barnes was born in August of 1951. After his discharge, Buzz went to work for AT&T from which he retired in 1988. Three more children were born to his first marriage, Harry C. Barnes III, Patrick B. Barnes, and Mary Kathleen Barnes. Buzz was Scoutmaster of the Boy Scout Troop 259 for over 10 years where his boys were in Scouts. All his sons were in the Scouting program. Three of them became Eagle Scouts. Buzz’s first marriage ended in 1978. He married his current wife of 28 years, Rosemary Jones-Barnes in 1984, on her 50th birthday. He had numerous hobbies. Having been a telegrapher and radio operator, he had a lifelong interest in Ham Radio. He loved all things boat. He started with a used canoe and worked up to the 26 foot sea camper that he towed all over the USA. He was commandant in a local flotilla of the coast guard auxiliary. Some memories about Buzz: Rosemary said, “Buzz was the best birthday present I ever received. I’ve been blessed with a kind, gentle, laid back GENTLEMAN and thank God for this gift. ” Buzz and I didn’t let any grass grow under our feet. We travelled far and wide, exploring this great United States. Our first camping trip was with my mother, Audrey, where we travelled to Canada and the northern part of the country (the Dakotas and Minnesota). We became part of a camping group. Some of the more memorable trips were to Williamsburg Va., Mt Rushmore and the surrounding area, and Alaska. We went with an A T & T retirement group to Austria and 3 surrounding countries, and then to Malta where we were joined by my son and family for a trip to Ireland. In another wonderful memory, after we left Ireland we went on to Scotland and then to England (this was our second trip to England). Our biggest trip was to China since Buzz wanted to see how much it had changed since he had been stationed there (it was great). Our final trips were to Hawaii and to the wedding of my granddaughter in Pennsylvania. A much bigger love than he had for boats was his love for his children. Buzz was able to bond with the children of both his families. He established a relationship with all of Rosemary’s children as well, making them feel as if they were his own. The following words are from a plaque Connie gave to Buzz that expresses her deep feelings. “To My Stepfather, Oh how I wondered how I’d fit into your life, That day you made mother your wife You made it known right from the start, your love for me was from a caring heart. I was your child step is a word you didn’t know. In your steadfast ways, you’ve helped me to grow. You’ve stood by me through thick and thin, I’ve never doubted that you would again. You gave me a home with love inside. You gave me a family I claim with pride. You gave me something I never had, You gave me you, Thank you Dad. Buzz was a faithful Christian. When he was raising his family, he was an Elder of the Barry Christian Church. In later years, he was an Elder of the New Horizon Church of Christ in Willard. Christine remembers a time when the family was on his boat for a vacation in Hot Springs. It was special because they had not taken a lot of vacations and they also got to spend the night on the boat. She thought he was really cool for that. That time of being on the boat established a pattern of good family times with the kids and grandkids that lasted until he got too sick to go out anymore. Debbie and Buzz had a common interest in eating healthy and exercise. When eating at a buffet, the two of them would always head to the salad bar while others went for the main dishes and desserts. They talked about everything under the sun whenever they had the chance. John recalls a very early memory, sitting on Buzz’s lap out behind the house he was building on North Pontiac. It was 4th of July, and Buzz was smoking his pipe. He had made a little gun from plumbing pipes. He would put a firecracker in the end of the little gun, light the fuse from his pipe, hold it overhead and then… “Pop” and they were showered with the paper it was made from. John recalls that he would giggle each time it went “Pop”, and the warmth of the moment. For a picture obituary of Buzz’s life click on the following link. http://www.flickr.com/photos/94979500@N08/show/