Dr. Charles Miller Barnes

Charles M Barnes was born on July 21, 1922 in Rising Star, Texas, to George and Erie Barnes. He was the youngest of five, with 2 brothers and 2 sisters. After graduating from Rising Star High School, he entered the Texas A.M. School of Veterinary Medicine in the fall of 1940. He met his wife, Anna, there and were married in 1943.

After a short period of private practice in Cisco, Texas, Charles worked for the USDA in Mexico to stop the spread of Hoof and Mouth Disease protecting the cattle in the United States. He discovered broader opportunities to use his veterinary medicine training in the study of radiation safety at Hanford in Washington state. He attended the University of California, at the Berkeley and Davis campuses, to earn a PhD in Radio-pathology in 1956. From there, he worked in a number of radiation safety areas for the Atomic Energy Commission. Later, he established a program irradiating Screwworm larvae to combat and eradicate the spread of devastating disease to humans across Central America. Once the Manned Spacecraft Program started, he worked for NASA in Houston measuring the radiation exposure of astronauts and ways to insure their safety.

A man of many interests and talents, he traveled the world to better the lives of humans and animals. The father of four and grandfather of eleven, he inspired them all.

A memorial service to celebrate Charles’ life will be held at 2:00 P.M. on Saturday, October 13, 2012 in the chapel of the Cook-Walden Davis Funeral Home in Georgetown, Texas.

Arrangements by Cook-Walden/Davis Funeral Home, 2900 Williams Drive, Georgetown, Texas 78628 (512)863-2564.