Barny is the most colorful member of the Kansas Barn Alliance (KBA), and he is on the move!  You might have seen him already at a KBA workshop, or spotted him investigating historic barns in advance of repair work… Barny likes to strut his stuff around every barn he sees, but he appears to prefer the historic ones – we at the NBA suffer from a similar condition.

Pictured: Brad, and his son, Kolbe, Holmsten from West Chester, PA; Russ Holmsten from Daytona Beach, FL; family friend, Andy Brown from Overland Park, KS, and Barny, of course!

Earlier this summer Barny dropped by the barn-repair crew at the Brokesh Barn in Republic County, Kansas.  This barn restoration is truly a family effort with determined kin travelling from as far as way as Florida and Pennsylvania!  The rest of the remarkable story will be in the next Kansas Barn Alliance newsletter, The Rural Icon.

He recently found himself on the window sill of a stone barn at the Hanson farmstead in Cloud County, Kansas, where this 20’x30′ limestone building will be tuck-pointed and have windows & doors installed, so Barny took advantage of the photo opportunity!

Barny at the Hanson farmstead in Cloud County.

This incredibly photogenic rooster has been charming his way into many barn and farm events as of late.  Word has it that Barny got the Early Bird Discount and is already registered for the KBA’s BarnFest’13, a two-day conference on October 4th and 5th in Marion County (for further details, visit www.kansasbarnalliance.org).

Barny also plans to attend the Mother Earth News Fair in Lawrence, Kansas, on October 12th and 13th.  The KBA will have a booth there to share information on barn preservation and reuse, and Barny will be on hand to take your questions and pose for pictures with all his barn fans!

It’s true what they say, “Life is never dull in the world of Kansas barns!”  The NBA would sincerely like to thank Susie Haver for sharing updates on all of Barny’s latest adventures, and the wonderful group of Kansans in the KBA hard at work supporting barn preservation in their state!