Robert N. Barnes MD

Dr. Robert “Bob” Barnes passed away December 27, 2021 at home surrounded by family after a long illness. He was at peace and expressed deep love and gratitude for his family and the many people who took care of him through his illness.

Born on March 22, 1929 in Oklahoma City, OK, to Dewey R. Barnes and Ruth Lucretia “Georgie” Harlan Barnes, he grew up in poverty and began working to support his mother when he was 12 years old earning 25 cents a week. Dr. Barnes told lively stories of his adventures working for a local store and delivering dry cleaning in Oklahoma City.

Dr. Barnes graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Oklahoma. He continued his education at OU medical school training in Internal Medicine and Cardiology and passing his boards in both. There he met nurse JoAnn Wikle. They married in November of 1957 and recently celebrated their 64th anniversary together. He always said he was very fortunate to marry JoAnn.

Dr. Barnes reached the rank of Commander in the US Coast Guard while stationed in Seattle, WA. In 1960, he moved to Temple, TX where he joined the staff at the Temple Veterans Administration Medical Center. He retired September 1993 after 33 years as Chief of Cardiology and Assistant Chief of Internal Medicine. During this time, he joined the faculty at the Texas A&M College of Medicine where he taught for 14 years. Dr. Barnes loved to teach and was recognized many times for his teaching service: American Heart Association Cardiovascular Diseases Teacher of the Year (1986), The Association of Former Students of Texas A&M University Distinguished Teaching award (1987-1988), and the Scott & White Interns and Residents Best Clinical Physician and Teacher award (1975-1976). Not ready to fully retire, he began working part time for the State of Texas disability services in Austin where he worked for 13 years before fully retiring.

Dr. Barnes had many hobbies including studying classical music and composers, building model train landscapes and collecting stamps and rare coins. He was a devoted fan of the OU Sooners and the Dallas Cowboys rarely failing to miss a game on TV.

One of the great joys of Dr. Barnes’ life was being a member of First Baptist Church of Temple, TX. He joined the church with his family in 1960 and remained active until his death. He was proud to be a Deacon at the church. With his wife, he started the first Sunday school couples class, and they led it together for many years offering fellowship to many. He wanted it proclaimed loudly that he truly loved the Lord.

Dr. Barnes is survived by his beloved wife JoAnn, son David (wife Kathy) daughter Dianne, grandchildren Kristine, Danielle (husband Kyle), Kathleen (husband Matt) and great-grandchildren Lucas and Lorelai. He will be sorely missed.

A private service will be held at First Baptist Church at 10am Wednesday January 5th. The service will be streamed live at https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/temple-tx/robert-barnes-10503885.

Donations are requested instead of flowers:

First Baptist Church Temple, 8015 W Adams Ave, Temple TX 76502 – www.fbc-temple.org or Texas Baptist Men Inc., 5351 Catron Dr., Dallas TX 75227-9806 – www.tbmtx.org.