Angel Grace was born July 21, 1978 in Kansas City, Kansas. At a very young age, Angel and 3 other siblings were placed in foster care homes. The placement of 2 sisters was unknown to her, but she fought to keep in contact with her baby brother Christopher Duane. They were kept apart in separate foster homes, so Angel would run away, seeking her brother to make sure he was okay. After running away multiple times, a judge finally decided that these 2 siblings would be placed no more than 20 miles apart and be allowed to see each other. Christopher was her whole world and they shared a very special bond that will continue on forever. Angel moved between foster homes before coming to live with prospective adoptive parents, Derbin and Sue Barnes in Phillipsburg, Kansas in 1987, along with her little brother Christopher. Angel was 9 and Christopher was 3. Here they felt wanted, loved, a sense of security and belonging. They were to be adopted together and officially took the last name Barnes in 1989. Derbin and Sue gave them a loving home and everything the children had been missing. This period in life would later drive Angel’s desire to become a foster parent. Her love and passion for KU Basketball and collecting shoes began at a young age. Throughout her school years, Angel was happy and outgoing, active in athletics, music, band, and drama. In grade school, she befriended Crystal Dawn Stacy, and then in high school Heather Hansen. These 3 would become lifelong friends. Angel graduated from Phillipsburg High School in 1997. After high school, she attended Bethel College at Newton. Here she met and befriended Alycee Gullino, who would also become a lifelong friend. Angel was a protective and mothering friend, once cautioning Alycee and another common friend against meeting a stranger they had found online. He wanted to take the girls to see a band, and she worried he might be a “crazed psycho”. After they were back safely, and no harm was done, they came to find out that this “crazed psycho” was actually a mutual friend that Angel knew from back home. In fact, he was the local pizza delivery guy, so her father Derbin already approved. He would later become her husband. Angel’s educational goals then took her to Colby Community College, where she studied for only a semester before moving to Manhattan to be nearer to her growing love, Jr Rice. The couple moved back to Kensington and were united in marriage on July 10, 1999 at the United Church. With this union, Angel gained Steve and JoAnn Rice as another set of parents, and a new sister Staci. Yet, something was missing. Searching for her Biological family, especially her 2 lost sisters, became a special goal for Angel. Shortly after they married, Angel managed to contact and reunite with long lost sister Sarah Fleming Gleaton. It was very important for Angel to find this missing piece of her family and her heart. They have stayed in touch ever since. Caring for and helping others was always something Angel felt called to do. And so, Jr and Angel were foster parents for several years. They influenced numerous youth who entered their home. During this time, Angel also worked as a CNA and med aide for various nursing homes, hospitals, and agencies. Each patient and resident she came in contact with was important and loved. She made a difference and made every person feel special. Many patients would say she gave the very best care they’d ever received. She loved them like family, but there was still something missing. Something Angel wanted more than anything was to become a mother, but was told by doctors that she may never be able to. Angel had occasionally commented about wanting a redheaded child with freckles. Jr and Angel were truly blessed when Kristal Ann Marie was born December 27, 2003. Angel decided to be a stay at home mother. After a period of time, she returned to work part-time at the Country Corner. She worked there until they were again blessed when Gracie Lynn Nicole joined the family on December 5, 2007. Angel was thrilled to finally have one little girl with freckles and one with red hair. She later went back to work as a traveling CNA, working in various towns, until she began struggling with thyroid issues. She made the decision to have her thyroid destroyed, then went to work at the Love’s Travel Stop in Phillipsburg. Following this, she did return to CNA work at the hospital in Smith Center where she worked for about 2 years. Then, the opportunity arose and Angel was accepted to do a job she had long dreamed of doing. Clara Barton had always been her hero and role model. Working for the American Red Cross would become a reality. Though COVID made things difficult, and she struggled through the shutdown and restrictions to complete her training, she did so successfully. Based out of Hays, she traveled with the Red Cross providing blood drives in Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma and even the panhandle of Texas. In January of 2022, she transferred to Grand Island and traveled throughout Nebraksa doing Power Reds and was looking forward to the next stage, training in plasma. She would regularly come home with all the needle caps she had saved, holding out a handful to show her family saying “Every one of these was 3 lives saved,” with a gigantic smile on her face. She was finally doing the job she felt called to do, that left her with a great sense of fulfillment. She served the American Red Cross for a year and a half, helping save numerous lives. Special Memories……. Angel loved and adored her 2 daughters, Kristal Ann (her “little ladybug”) and Gracie Lynn (her “little dragonfly”), more than anything in this world. She would always take her girls' side in all playful arguments with their father, just so he had 3 girls to outnumber him (or just for spite). She loved taking her girls to thrift stores, doing their hair, painting their nails, and binge watching Disney movies. Angel also thoroughly enjoyed watching Gracie engaged in sassy banter with Jr, always prepared with witty comebacks, and the relationship these two have. Although she despised having her photo taken, she did not hesitate in taking pictures with her daughters. She also overcame her anxiety of crowds to support her girls and attend all the school functions and events possible. She could not contain her laughter when someone mentioned the word “Chair” due to witnessing Jr breaking 3 of them when sitting. Jr and Angel made it a special point to have date nights together. They enjoyed their trips out of town, whether for shopping or doctor's visits, they valued this time together. While she was away for work, Angel would call Jr everyday to have someone to talk to while she was driving and would have him track her GPS location in case she ever got lost. (This may have happened once or twice.) He was her “Superman” who took care of things at home, kept her on track, supported her, and in most needed times, be her “emotional support human”. Jr took great pleasure in making Angel’s special requests come true. Such as taking her to see George Strait, Jeff Dunham, and watching KU in-person at Allen Fieldhouse on a couple occasions. Angel also cherished holding the title “coolest aunt” to all of her nephews and niece: Jacob, Zach, Levi, and Lucas Barnes; Spencer, Tyler, Lyndzie, Jordan, and James Kearn, and Cory Chippeaux. Her extra siblings through marriage, Ricky Kearn and Erica Barnes, thought she was pretty amazing too, and she valued her time spent with them. Angel loved her animals and ducks dearly. 2 kids, 2 dogs, 2 ducks (that count as one), and tooooooo many cats! She treasured her other best friend Charlie, a 2001 Mustang convertible that has been wrecked and revived multiple times, ending with a beloved custom paint job of glitter and butterfly seat covers. She enjoyed watching conspiracy theory and ghost hunting shows, and of course KU basketball, especially during tournament time. It was at your own risk to go within 10 feet of her during tournament games, because she REALLY got into the game and you could inadvertently get clobbered or go deaf from her yelling and punching at the table. She ALMOST ruined Jr’s new TV when he caught her taking a swing at it during a KU/K-State game. Angel enjoyed taking friends, like Brandi Cantrall, or her girls, on quick trips to Sonic or those infamous midnight Love’s runs. Her Friday night nachos from the Rusty Tractor became a ritual. She made instant friends wherever she went, with many becoming more like family, be it at work or play; including the rodeo, where she first met Shannon Vales, her husband Randy and daughter Jordyn. Shannon and her sister Stacey Hoskins became more like sisters to Angel, and Jordyn, another daughter. She cherished her gal pal times attending concerts, going on trips, or holding backyard bonfires and hanging out with friends listening to music. She enjoyed pedicure dates and going to see Tom Petty with Jennifer Elson. Her most recent concert was the New Kids On the Block with Jennifer Lee, Stacy Hoskins and Cindy Garey. On her weekends off, if she wasn’t home with her husband and girls, you were likely to find her next door with her kindred spirit Melinda. Her heart was so big that she never turned anyone away in need of help, which resulted in opening their home to several friends, lending vehicles or a bed to those in need. After a dear friend's passing, Angel took her daughter Stephanie under her wing, and loved her like her own, becoming her 3rd daughter. She even worked nearly every holiday so that co-workers could be home with their families. She was not afraid to be quirky, a bit strange, or that person who runs to the store wearing her Eeyore pajamas. Always young at heart, she was often the life of the party with her cheerful and contagious spirit. Over the years, Angel struggled past several medical setbacks with the most recent one being thickened heart walls. This forced her to slow down, not being able to do as much as she would normally. Regardless, the interactions and care given to any of her patients and co-workers were 2nd to none. She loved her job, she loved her family, and she loved living. She cherished living her life to the fullest, but she had always said that she would never grow old. Angel was truly a blessing and an inspiration to anyone she came into contact with. We could go on and on trying to convey how much everyone meant to her, and how much SHE meant to others. She will be missed dearly by all and she truly loved all of you.