Kyna Barnett

By Andy Kozlowski
C & G Staff Writer

HAZEL PARK — Classes were cancelled at Hazel Park High School and Hazel Park Junior High Feb. 3 to observe the funeral of English teacher Kyna Barnett.

The 34-year-old Sterling Heights resident, who attended Hazel Park schools and taught in the district for 10 years, died of a brain aneurism Jan. 29. She was four months pregnant with her third child.

Earlier Jan. 29, she had suffered a fierce headache. Her husband, John Barnett, a physical education instructor who taught across the hall from her at Hazel Park High, rushed her to an emergency room, from which she was transferred to Providence Hospital. She died there later that day, surrounded by friends and family.

Her eldest son, Zackary, turned 7 years old a few days later, Feb. 1. Her other son, Carter, is 4.

Beloved by students in a district where she also coached cheer for a few years and directed a national award-winning yearbook, Barnett had many ties to Hazel Park schools, including her uncle, Superintendent Victor Mayo; her father, Ken Mayo, director of general services and a former city councilman; her mother, Vicki Hunt, the high school athletic director’s secretary; and four sisters-in-law who work as teachers in the district.

“She was one of those people who’d light up the room whenever she came in. She just had so much charisma,” marveled Deputy Superintendent Jim Meisinger. “I think that’s one of the reasons more than 5,000 people came to her visitation. The longest funeral procession I’ve ever seen.”

Don Vogt, principal of Hazel Park High, said Barnett touched many students’ lives, and even had a positive impact on some she knew only fleetingly.

“As a teacher, she developed fine students,” Vogt said. “She also taught valuable lessons in life, and she did it by building their self-confidence. She had kids believe they could accomplish things that they never in their wildest imaginings thought they could.”

Vogt said that students thought of Barnett as both a close friend and a role model, as Kyna and Mrs. Barnett, respectively.

“I think there’s a fine line teachers face, being a friend and being an instructor,” he mused. “She was one of those who could do both effectively.”

Meisinger said Barnett would be remembered for “her energy, her enthusiasm, her vitality, her sense of humor and her drive to accomplish things.

“She was one that if you wanted to get something done, have Kyna work on it,” he added. “She was a dynamo in every respect.”

Though the community grieves her passing, Vogt believes Barnett would want people to stay upbeat.

“There was never a time when she didn’t have a smile, or a kind word,” he recalled. “If she taught me one thing — and I wish I would practice it more — it’s just to be positive about life.”

Those who want to support a cause dear to Barnett’s heart can do so by donating to the Maggie Lynn Foundation, 11254 Charles Drive, Warren MI 48093. The group was formed in memory of Barnett’s niece who died of cancer at a young age.