Julie Ann Holmes Barnes

Places she lived:

Bishop Hill 1962-1965

Beardstown 1965-1967

Morton 1967-1968

Polo 1968-1980 (Graduated High School)

She Graduated from Polo High School.

Fun Facts-

- She always dragged around a raggedy, armless, hairless, nude, worn out baby doll named Charlie everywhere she went. Later Charlie was replaced by Suzie.

- She never allowed her hair to be put-up into Pony Tails, but would allow it if they were called Doggy Ears! She called them Doggy Ears her whole life.

- She was kicked out of the Brownies - only she knows why.

- She played piano, taking lessons for 9 years and was very good at it!

- She always attended Sunday School and Church services; she sang in the church singing group as well.

- She always had to be the one that placed baby Jesus in the manger scene at Church, claimed it was "Her Job".

- Her family loved to camp and be outdoors, this continued throughout her life. She loved Silverton, Ouray, and Lake City Colorado areas!

- On one family trip to Washington D.C., she "escaped" and ran to the top of the Washington Monument, she was 3!

- Before the age of 1, she would crawl on her hands and feet with her butt wagging in the air!

Julie did well in school and graduated from High School in Polo in 1980 and was part of the Senior Honor Roll.

She was in choir, a cheerleader, drama, and played the flute in the marching band.

In 1986 she received an associates degree in Child Care Technologies from the Kishwaukee College, and reached the level of Magna Cam Laude.

In 1981 Julie Married Kevin Higgs, and in 1982 she gave birth to her first child, her Daughter Brooke Robin Higgs.

In 1986 her 1st son Tyler Scott Higgs was born. He came home with a skin infection and it really bothered her to hear him scream when they had to scrub his skin at night.

Julie worked in child care and teaching her whole life and had quite the knack for it. She was very intuitive with discovering kids & adults personalities, and she seemed to know just how to adjust to each persons needs.

After several years of marriage, Julie separated from Kevin.

In 1994 Julie met Brian Barnes and moved to the area around Dallas, Texas.

Their relationship grew into a deep love and friendship that was lived to its fullest until the end! It was true love.

Julie and Brian loved to camp and travel and spent time with a large group of friends exploring Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Colorado. Allot of time was spent with friends around Austin Texas, in fact Brian proposed to Julie in front of 3 other couples on a boat in the middle of Lake Travis, Julie didn't hesitate one second in saying yes and she never seemed happier.

Julie and Brian were married at the Historic Round Grove Church in Lewisville Texas on January 27th 1996 in front of a large gathering of friends and family. The reception was held in their home in Corinth Texas and was remembered as one of the best days of their lives!!!

One year and one day after they married their son Chance Allen Barnes was born on January 28th 1997 in the Lewisville Hospital.

Julie wanted to stay home and raise the children and it was a wonderful time for her and the kids, Chance turned out to be a fine young man because of her.

On August 20th 1999 they gave birth to their second child Faith Ann Barnes., Julie continued to stay home with the kids. They had a large tree swing behind the house they used daily, those kids had a great time!

Julie wanted a dog, so she found a Golden Retriever named Cisco Kid, and like the kids, he had a great time being raised by Julie, she blessed everything she touched! Those kids tugged on that dogs ears and hair and he had the best patience a dog could have.

The Barnes family moved to Lakewood Colorado in 2000 due to an opportunity in the company Brian worked for, and they always loved the time they spent in Colorado so it seemed like a perfect fit. Julie continued to hold down the fort while Brian worked. Once they had the funds they purchased the house in Roxborough Village winch she loved due to the room for gardens and landscaping. Yes she even made Brian build a giant fort on the back yard for the kids, they loved it!!!

The house was very close to the school, and many mornings were spent waiting for those doors to open and during these waits is when she and Brian made friends with a huge crowd of Roxborough friends. The best folks in the world in our opinion! She and Brian love each and everyone of you! You became our Family and we love all of you.

Being near the school opened up numerous opportunities for Julie to volunteer at the school which she did often. This led to opportunities to work part/full-time at the school which she eventually did once the kids were both in school, and she worked at the school up to the day she passed from this world to Heaven above. She loved the kids and families and co-workers at that school and made many lasting friendships there.

Julie worked as an Education Assistant at the school and loved working with the kids and helping to make a difference in the lives of those children and parents. It gave her the opportunity to "Make a Difference". She will always be remembered for her sayings like: "give it to God", or "Oki, Dokie, Artichokie", "it was Gods will", or "he is a little wack-a-doodle today!" She made life and work fun, and everyone enjoyed the time they spent with her.

Julie was the master of hugs and knew how to win kids and adults over. Many kids simply knew her as "Barnes" and they would yell out her name as they ran into her arms for a hug from the bus each day. She will be missed by all.

At school she loved to count down the days to events in her life such as vacations, or the end of school, she would count down these events using paper-chains that she would build, some were so long they could hang from the ceiling and touch the floor!

One of her co-workers wrote: When things got stressful, Barnes was the voice of reason. Her "It's okay..." attitude was her mantra, and we tried to embrace it as our class mantra. Her presence would calm you. She also brought laughter during moments of stress, and had a way to cool down an issue and end the day with everyone laughing.

Through the years Julie enjoyed vacations to various Worldly destinations, camping, and visiting her family and relatives in Illinois. Being with her kids, friends, and family meant the world to her. She loved every minute she spent with her Grandson Caleb. One year through the grace of God, Julie and the kids lived through a major train crash in Iowa on AMTRACK... she was blessed.

Julie spent many mornings at the Starbucks coffee shop in Roxborough with her Coffee Club. Her Coffee Club meant the world to her- Stacey, Sandy, Becky... you made her days full. She loved each of you.

Julie loved dogs, after Cisco Kid passed, she searched and found a Bichon named Bumble, and after Bumble, Julie found the love of her life in a GoldenDoodle puppy she named Mabel. Mabel meant the world to Julie and could do no wrong!!! Mabel became the lap-dog that Julie always wanted even though Mabel weighed 60 LBS!!!

Julie loved knitting, sewing, and quilting. She loved making things and giving them to people as gifts. She has as many half finished projects as finished ones! She also enjoyed gardening and always had a garden growing in the back of each house she owned.

Julie collected PEZ. Everywhere she went she would find a PEZ that she "Just had to have". She spent her whole life on the hunt for a hat for the Dumbo PEZ she loved.

In June 2015 after school had ended for the summer, Julie developed a back pain that was later diagnosed as cancer, and after a short 6 week battle Julie succumbed to the cancer that had developed around her liver and gall bladder. She got one round of chemo, but she was so ill before the fight began, her body couldn't withstand what the cancer had done to her. Julie's body died during her sleep on August 21st 2015 at 6:20 AM in the Littleton Adventist Hospital in Littleton Colorado.

Have no fear, she is in Heaven with God, living with no pain, no suffering, and only knows joy! She is waiting on all of us, so rejoice and know in your heart that you and I will see her again there and we will have a life that is more than we will ever have here, so live well, love well, believe in God and live as God would want.

Julie loved us and continues to love all of us even now.

Written by her loving husband and best friend: Brian Allen Barnes