Rev. Clarence Richard Barnes: Beloved Pastor, Veteran, and Musician Remembered

The Rev. Clarence Richard Barnes was called home to be with God on Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. He was born Feb. 19, 1946, to Cleveland and Mary Bell Williams Barnes in Muscogee County. 

Funeral services will be held at 10:30 a.m. (EST) Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, at Mt. Pilgrim Baptist Church, 401 Ford Drive, Columbus, Ga. 31903 with burial at Fort Mitchell National Cemetery, 553 Highway 165, Ft. Mitchell, Ala. 36856.

Visitation and viewing will be held 2–5 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 14, 2024, at Progressive Funeral Home, 4235 St. Mary’s Road, Columbus, Ga. 31907.

Barnes was beloved by many, including our Managing Editor Kirsten Barnes who was blessed to call him "Dad." He graduated from George Washington Carver High School in 1964 where he was a trumpet player in the band. He had a three-man ensemble which played a various school and community events, and he earned the name “Little Miles Davis” because he was such a good musician. He attended Florida A&M University on a band scholarship when The Marching 100 was all-male, but left school to enlist in the U.S. Air Force in 1964. He served honorably for 12 years and was a Vietnam War Veteran.

After completing his military career, Rev. Barnes received an associate’s degree in accounting from Columbus Technical College and worked as a tax preparer until the 2024 tax season. In addition, he retired from Oneda Corporation where he was a machine operator. 

He was called to preach in the late 1980s, and in addition to serving in various assistant pastoral roles at Mount Pilgrim Baptist Church, where he joined as a child, he served as pastor at Zion Hill Baptist Church in Cusseta, Ga.

He is survived by his wife of 13 years Barbara Regina Barnes, two daughters from a previous marriage Kimberly Barnes and Kirsten J. Barnes, and a granddaughter Kassidy Barnes, all of Montgomery, Ala., stepchildren Nadia Stewart, Keisha Wallace (Joshua Sr.) and Jacobe Stewart (Anais') all of Columbus; siblings: Mary Annetta Barnes Lee of Silver Spring, Maryland, Lois Jean Barnes McCray of District Heights, Maryland, the Rev. Ronnie Lee Barnes of Long Beach, California, and Marvin Eugene Barnes (Mariah) of Washington, D.C.; Step-grandchildren: Eden, Joshua Jr., Zane and Brayden of Columbus; brother-in-law Byron Johnson (Veta); sister-in-law Tammy Smith (Hubert) both of Columbus; nephews: Zebulon Barnes (Cynthia) and James Gamble (Katherine); nieces: Brandy May Gouzem, Veronica Phillips, Jackie Barnes, Christal Zirak, Amber Mogahdam, Linda Hood, Tracey B. Lee, Jan Gamble, Farah McCray, and Melodyann Level. 

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother James Gamble, and sisters Virginia L. Barnes Moore and Reba Sue Barnes Level.