John R. Barnard ’53

John, who excelled in football, hockey, and baseball at preparatory school (and would have been “a viable force in Princeton’s varsity backfield” as Harry Harwood, his classmate at St. Mark’s and University roommate remembers), died Oct. 21, 2011, at Southern New Hampshire Medical Center.

Tiger freshman coaches Matt Davidson and Eddie Donovan predicted great things for John on the gridiron until he broke bones while scrimmaging. That derailed his athletic aspirations, says John Spencer, the Ivy Club president, who remembers him as “extremely popular” and one of our most well-liked classmates on campus. John majored in English and belonged to the Right Wing Club — 16 seniors divided between Cap, Cottage, Colonial, Ivy, and Tiger whose sole purpose was happy times.

John was a Naval officer and Harvard Business School graduate — both of which served him well as a private investment banker.

Harry Harwood also recalls John dating his future wife, Helen “Hoppy” Purvis, at St. Mark’s finals. John loved the ocean, his boat, and his Great Danes, but above all his family. The Barnards summered at Kennebunkport, Maine, near the George Bush residence. Survivors include Hoppy, son Jay, daughter Natalie, and three grandchildren.