Kim and Thomas Barnett were destined for one another. They were both expected to attend Depauw University before landing at Valpo. Thomas says, “I graduated from an all-boys Jesuit high school in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. My dad went to DePauw University, and I have a lot of family in Greencastle, Indiana. I had visited the campus many times, and there was thought that I would go to DePauw. But I wanted to play baseball, and even though I didn’t have a baseball scholarship, they told me I could be a walk-on and try out for the baseball team at Valpo. We came and visited the campus one time, and I really enjoyed it.” Kim adds, “Strangely enough, I was expected to go to DePauw as well. My grandfather and my older sisters went there, so it was automatic. However, I was going to major in nursing and would not have been able to spend the final two years on campus; I would have ended up being in Indianapolis, and I didn’t want that. Then, when the gas crisis hit, my father said, ‘I think you need to go to Valpo.’ So we went over to Valpo.”
Thomas, a journalism major and business minor, and Kim, a nursing major, first crossed paths at the first icebreaker session during their freshman year. Thomas explains, “We met at the freshman icebreaker, and I initially thought that she liked my roommate more than she liked me. I was relatively shy. Later on in the week, I found out that she really did want to get to know me more, and things kind of blossomed from there.” Kim says, “I kept looking at him, and he wouldn’t look at me! The guy performing at the event was an Elvis impersonator. I told my roommate, ‘We need to go because I can’t handle more of this.’ I kept running into him all the time for an entire week. So, I finally decided, okay, let’s do this other outing. We went on the bus trip to the Dunes, which was a major mistake. The group went hiking on the trails, and we decided that wasn’t for us. We stayed in the parking lot and talked. And that was that. We’ve been together for the last 44 years.”
Thomas affectionately refers to his wife as “the wife so nice, I married her twice.” Kim joined the Army in 1989 and there was potential that she may soon be deployed to Desert Storm, so the couple decided to marry in Tahoe that January. They had what they consider their “real wedding” later that same year in August.
The Barnetts say that some of their fondest Valpo memories surround the Chapel of the Resurrection but for different reasons. Kim explains, “Being able to sing in the Chapel of the Resurrection is one of my fondest memories. It’s such an amazing space, and I’ve been fortunate to be able to sing all over the world. I’ve sung at the Sydney Concert Hall, St. Stephens, and the Kapella Concert Hall in St. Petersburg, Russia – which was built around acoustics. Singing in the Chapel and having the organ is just so special. I love that space, and I loved performing in it.” Thomas adds, “When I was at Valpo, Professor Neal, who was from Chicago, was in charge of Black Studies and the Black Student Organization. One of the great things he had was his connections with celebrities and other folks in Chicago. One of those was Ramsey Lewis, one of my favorite jazz musicians. He brought Ramsey Lewis to Valpo, where he performed in the Chapel. It was an amazing concert.” He continues, “Ramsey Lewis was such an improvisational genius that he improvised a song as the bells rang. I remember that so vividly.”
Thomas also explains that the cultural education he received at Valpo has been something he cherished as he got older. “There were many other people that Professor Neal brought in and shared with us. It expanded my understanding of other cultures. That was one of the things I loved about Valpo. It took me a while to get it, but when I looked back on those things, I think it meant a lot to me, and it meant a lot to the other students.”
The unique Valpo experience motivated both Kim and Thomas to continue exploring new cultures through travel and to take risks. Thomas explains, “I think one of the things that Valpo instilled in me is to take risks. One might say that our relationship would be a risk. Career-wise, there were opportunities where I could either stay put or go for it. Valpo instilled in me the confidence that I have the skills and abilities I had learned that could make me successful in life.” He continues, “One of the things it enabled Kim and I to do is travel quite a bit. Certainly, when we were freshmen in the 1980s at Valpo, I never thought I’d go to Australia, Russia, or South Africa. Still, Valpo gave us a thirst to learn and an interest in expanding that and seeing things we’d only read about. I think this came from our families individually, but certainly, they were nurtured while we were on campus.”
After graduating from Valpo in 1984, Thomas worked as a Technical Writer while Kim worked in the medical centers in South Bend, then joined the Army. Thomas enjoyed a successful career as a Director of Marketing, retiring from Cisco Systems just before the Covid-19 pandemic. He now considers himself a semi-professional golfer, working part-time at a local golf course, where he can golf for free. Kim went on to earn her master’s degree in hospital administration and later a doctorate. She was a critical care nurse and administrator for most of her career. Having served as a nurse through various health crises, she, too, decided to retire ahead of the pandemic. Currently, she works for a local pharmacy giving vaccinations.
The Barnetts live in Northern California and have three daughters – their oldest, Amanda, and twins, Rachel and Olivia. Their first granddaughter was born earlier this year. The couple enjoys traveling together, listening to music, and watching movies, and are very active in their church. However, Thomas says he has really enjoyed watching Kim become a grandmother. He says, “I like to watch her go crazy about her granddaughter. We took a trip to Monterey just last week. She didn’t have anything she wanted to do until she saw a baby boutique that she had to go to. There were baby clothes that she had to find. I’m happy to keep supporting her passion for that.”
Kim and Thomas are grateful for their time at Valpo and cherish the rich experiences they have from their time on campus. They explain, “We love Valpo, we appreciate Valpo. It’s a place that we share together. We still have fond memories of the Popcorn Bowl and sororities putting together floats on Lincolnway; all those things are etched in our memories. We appreciate the place and the people, and after all these years, we’re still very good friends with so many people we went to school with.”
