Roy Barnett died Tuesday. He left behind a host of friends, including yours truly.
Roy and I graduated from Humboldt High in 1961. I knew him then, but didn’t really get to know Roy until more recently as part of a group of former classmates began to meet regularly for a meal and conversation.
Ask Roy about a good place to eat within driving distance and he could give a full account, what was good, what wasn’t and appealing peripherals.
I don’t know a great deal about Roy’s life other than through our monthly sessions, but I can tell you this, he was a good conversationalist. For a kid who grew up on the farm and never left, he had eclectic interests.
He followed the cattle trade and attended any number of weekly auctions. Ask the price of cattle, today, yesterday or a month ago, or what it might be in the weeks ahead, and Roy had an answer.
What I liked better was his keen interest in local affairs, much more than the neighborhood gossip. He kept track of what local governing bodies were up to and he wasn’t reluctant to pick my brain, eager to find out why the county made a certain decision or what I thought about what was occurring in any number of other venues.
His interests also went beyond the public sphere. Roy was eager to know about his friends, and usually could answer an inquiry about the same.
Perhaps the one thing Roy taught me, in subtle ways, is that everyone deserves more than cursory consideration in conversation or any aspect of daily life. Dig deeper than the surface, and you’ll often a kind, considerate person.
Unlike many men in his situation, home alone, Roy was bold in seeking out friends. I suspect few of those attending tonight’s all-classes reunion at Humboldt High School had looked forward to it more than Roy. He enjoyed immensely any get-together.
He usually was the first to arrive at our monthly affairs, and stepped up when it was his turn to host by treating us all to dinner at some nice restaurant.
When Roy was diagnosed with cancer, he took it with equanimity. He underwent treatments — liked to kid about a port inserted to transport meds — and from all reports he was getting along well enough that his appetite had returned.
When I pass on to my heavenly rewards, I hope people say as many nice things about me as I’ve heard said about Roy the past few days.
