Obituary of John Lewis Barnes

With his family at his bedside, John L. Barnes passed away on June 4th after a long illness that was bravely fought. John was born in Southern California but lived many of his childhood years in Cooksville, TN. He returned to California at 19 years old and married Belva Sils. They were together for 50 years until her passing in 1999. In 2006 John found love again with Helen who was his companion until his passing. Helen brought joy, love and care to John during his final years and his family is so grateful to her. John had a deep love for animals of all kinds. He especially loved horses and enjoyed riding his horse, Joe. He was a lifetime member ( 50 yrs) of the Sheriff's Posse patrolling the beaches offering assistance. The Posse sponsored many activities including a rodeo, a fun day for mentally and physically challenged children and parades. John loved and participated in all of these events. John also loved to travel both in the states and abroad. In the early days the family traveled with truck and camper taking family vacations with Barbara (daughter) and son Richard. Later they bought a beautiful trailer and traveled on many occasions with granddaughters Rachel and Kristie. One of his fondest travel memories was in 1989 when he and his wife with two other couples traveled across the USA in their RVs visiting each and every state. He continued to travel later in life taking a cruise with Helen to Alaska. John loved to work with wood. He had a small workshop where he created many special treasures, including a TV entertainment center and a swinging style loveseat bench. He built a vacation home in Paradise Pines which he and Belva owned for many years and it was enjoyed by many other family members as well. John attended Twin Lakes Church and served as an usher. He was a member of the Elks club. He was also a volunteer patrolman for the Scotts Valley police and frequently was the only one on duty at night during the early days. John was a big sports fan. He loved all sports but his favorite was the NFL and the 49er's! John Barnes was a very honest, honorable and caring man. He was very respectful to all he knew. He had skills of organization and worked hard from a very young age. He always gave 100%. He will be greatly missed. John is survived by his wife, Helen. A daughter, Barbara and a son, Richard. Grandchildren: Rachel (Chris), Kristie (Jon), Michael, Melanie and Anthony. Great Grand Children: Daniel, Christian, Jacob, Isiah, Elisia, Zachariah, Ezekiel and Frank. John was also survived by a sister, Alene Gordon and a brother, Raymond Barnes. He is preceded in death by: Sisters, Helen Lang and Marie Robinson. The family would like to thank Dr. Michael Johnson, VA nurse Sharon and caretakers: Luis, Melandro, Alquin and Carlos as well as the wonderful nurses of Oncology at Dominican Hospital for their loving care. Services will be held at Oakwood Memorial Chapel 3301 Paul Sweet Road Santa Cruz on Tuesday June 17, 2014 at 10:30 AM. A reception lunch will be held at the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Posse House 2127 Ocean Street Ext Santa Cruz at 1:00 PM.