Lyndon (aka Lindy) Barnes was born in 1928 and grew up in Trochu, Alta.; after completing his welders training he set off for Vancouver and found work as a welder.
It just so happened that there was a delay in between welding jobs so a friend of his got him some temporary work as a male nurse at the Colony Farm at Essondale Provincial Mental Hospital in Coquitlam. Essondale (named after Dr. Henry Esson Young who helped establish the original facility) was later known as Riverview Hospital; the hospital closed in 2012.
Lindy reminisced and said, "The job at the hospital was just temporary work. I didn't really care for it because all I wanted to do was to be a welder. I can remember spending time in the cafeteria. I was 22 years old and I had my eye on this cute little nurse; I didn't even know her name.
"I looked her over many times but she didn't even look at me. She was shy and so petite, and I sure liked the looks of her. I was six foot four and she looked about five foot three.
"I was watching her and thinking that when I married I would just go for the tiny ones and then maybe I would have more control over them. I eventually learned that this was not going to be the case with young Bobbi Swan."
Roberta (aka Bobbi) Swan was born in Vancouver in the year 1932. Roberta was 18 years old and she was being trained as a psychiatric nurse at the Essondale Hospital when she came down with the flu. She was recovering in the nurse's infirmary and as she sat looking out of the window Roberta jokingly called her friends over, pointed out this really tall, good looking guy who was walking by and said, "There goes my future husband."
Roberta said, "We were all sick with the flu but we still giggled over my comment. I did not know who the man was but my friends knew his friends. One of the nurses begged me to agree to a blind date with him only because she wanted to set up a date for herself with one of Lindy's work mates."
It turns out that Lindy agreed to the blind date, he had no idea who Bobbi Swan was and much to his delight he fell in love when they finally met one another that night.
Roberta and Lindy were married 63 years ago. They had three children; Robin (Ralph) Wright who lives here in Prince George, Drew lives in Edmonton and Simone lives in Duncan. They have ten grandchildren and four great grandchildren, all of which are their pride and joy.
Lindy had a 37 year career as a welder and mechanical technician on the pipelines.
He started out with Trans Mountain Pipeline for six years then went with Western Pacific Products & Crude Oil Pipelines Ltd. for 31 years - Western Pacific is now known as Pembina Pipeline.
Before he retired in 1993 the couple had moved 18 times, the final move was made from Quesnel to Prince George in 1969.
Roberta took the challenge of a career change and started working at the Woodward's department store. She loved her new job at Woodward's and all the people right up to the day she retired 20 years later.
Lindy has an extensive woodworking hobby and specializes in building miniature barns, prairie grain elevators and now miniature log houses many of which also serve as indoor or out door decorations and as mailboxes.
Lindy has been a member of the Masonic Lodge for the past 50 years and both Lindy and Roberta have been actively involved members of the Order of the Eastern Star (OES) since 1967; the OES is a fraternal organization that both men and women can join.
Roberta served as Worthy Grand Matron of the Grand Chapter of British Columbia from 1986 to 1987. In 1987 the annual OES Grand Chapter Session meetings were held here in Prince George at the old Civic Centre with over 1,300 registered OES members from all over visiting Prince George to attend the meetings.
Roberta has been a member of the Hospital Auxiliary for the past 26 years. She is a 46 year member of the OES cancer dressing group that makes bandages for cancer patients that get distributed free of charge and as needed by Northern Health.
She is an active member of Dalhousie and Friends, a weekly craft group that has been meeting regularly for the past 44 years. Roberta said, "During all those years many members have come and gone for one reason or another. We currently have eight members: Una McFarlane, Margaret Dunlop, Nancy Spensley, Enid Bond and the four remaining founding members including me are Marguerite Fox, Sylvia Swennumson and Jean Staniland.
Lindy, who is now 87 years old, concludes this story with this explanation: "When I was born my dad specifically chose my name as Lyndon after Charles Lindberg. Lindberg was nicknamed Lucky Lindy and my dad hung that name on me. It is true, I have been lucky because I married the sweetest, prettiest girl in the world."
