Barnes Leaves Long and Lasting Legacy with Middle Georgia State
Author: Sheron Smith
Posted: Friday, October 10, 2014 12:18 PM
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Macon, GA
The retired physician was volunteering his time with the college on several fronts, including consulting on health-related degree programs and working with what was then the Macon State College Foundation. But as a master gardener, Barnes’ greatest passion became taking the natural beauty he saw on the campus and transforming it into a comprehensive botanical gardens project.
Barnes did just that – and more. Under his leadership and guidance, the college’s plant operations department, community volunteers and knowledgeable gardeners over the years literally grew the project into what it is today: a botanical gardens featuring 36 distinct areas of plant life and trees situated throughout the campus and enjoyed by thousands of students, faculty, staff and visitors. The National Gardens Club Inc. recognized Barnes’ colossal achievement by giving him a national “Award of Excellence” last year. He also received a prestigious Arbor Day Award that same year.
The botanical gardens, which the Board of Regents officially named for Barnes in 2003, are now a living memorial to the man who first dreamed of them. Barnes passed away on October 7 at the age of 89.
“Dr. Barnes was eminently skilled in many fields—gardening among them,” said Middle Georgia State President Dr. Christopher Blake. “My hope is that we who are tasked with educating the next generation of leaders in Georgia will look to his example and encourage students to emulate Dr. Barnes’ passion for cultivating service, something he practiced as both an art and a science.”
Dr. David Bell, president emeritus of the former Macon State, said Barnes was a dynamic resource and friend for him from the very beginning of his 14 years at the college’s helm.
“I never knew anybody who was so imaginative and dedicated,” Bell said. “He added tremendously to the growth, development and status of Macon State, not just through the botanical gardens but through his leadership with the Foundation. He was always moving ahead and was such a terrific partner. This is a great loss to the college and the community.”
David Sims, assistant vice president for Facilities, probably worked with Barnes more closely than anyone. He recalled that when the Mother’s Day tornado of 2008 wiped out 90 percent of the Macon Campus tree canopy, Barnes was not discouraged at all about the disruption to the botanical gardens master planning.
“New plans were developed, and he was certain that implementing the new plan would make the gardens better than ever,” Sims said. “He was always encouraging and focused in planning the next step. Planning always involved learning new subjects. ‘Let’s consider a tea garden,’ he would say, followed by, ‘Tea is the world’s most popular drink. It grows well in coastal South Carolina. Think about it.’”
As Bell noted, Barnes’ work with the college wasn’t limited to the botanical gardens. For 12 years he served on the trustees board of the Macon State College Foundation (now the Middle Georgia State College Foundation) – half of that time as chairman - and worked alongside Sue Chipman, now retired as the Foundation’s executive director.
“He played a very important role during a period of rapid growth for the former Macon State,” Chipman said. “As an advocate, he helped to expand the number of supporters of the college. Because of him, the institution significantly raised its visibility within the region and state.”
Barnes donated his entire collection of horticulture and gardening books that he had amassed throughout his life to the MGA Library. The Library is in the process of cataloging the extensive collection and will add it to the existing Horticulture Special Collection established in 2001 through an endowment from Barnes.
Middle Georgia State will host a memorial service for Barnes at 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 11, in the Professional Sciences and Conference Center on the Macon Campus. His family requests memorial donations be made out to the Waddell Barnes Botanical Gardens, c/o Middle Georgia State College, 100 University Parkway, Macon, 31206.