Amy Melika Barnes Frey

September 8, 1962 - December 12, 2011 We have lost our beloved wife, daughter, sister, cousin, niece and friend. She will be remembered for her cheerfulness, humor, thoughtfulness, positive attitude, fearlessness, athleticism and competitiveness. She died suddenly at home from a pulmonary event. She was 49 years old. Amy was born in Boulder, Colorado to Dr. Frank S. and Gay D. Barnes on September 8, 1962 and has entertained us nearly every day since. She attended Douglas Elementary and Platt Junior High and graduated from Fairview High School in 1980. She received an B.S. degree in Biology from Ripon College, Wisconsin, in 1984 and an M.S. Degree in Interdisciplinary Telecommunications from the University of Colorado in 1986. Amy was a charter member of the Boulder YMCA Swim Team at age 7 and eventually swam competitively for the Boulder Aquanauts and the Commerce City Swim Club retiring in 1980. She won numerous awards and was Girls High School State Champion swimmer in the 500 yard freestyle in 1977. She won the Gold Medal as a member of the 400 Meter Free Relay at the National Sports Festival of 1978. She was a summer lifeguard at Boulder Country Club and Scott Carpenter pools and continued to coach swimming part-time in various locations for several more years. Amy became a certified Master Scuba Diver in 1988 and participated in dive trips all over the world with her husband, Richard Frey. While teaching dive classes with Richard, they became friends and he proposed to her underwater in a deep lead mine in 1992. They married on October 23, 1993 and have made their home in Louisville for 18 years. Their honeymoon was a dive trip to Australia's Great Barrier Reef. Ski racing was a great love. Amy was a fearless participant in the racing program at Lake Eldora and won numerous awards from 1968 to 1974 competing all over the Western U.S. She was a participant in the first slalom race under the night lights at Lake Eldora in 1971. If the downhill event had been available to young girls, Amy would have been in the starting gate. When the Modern Pentathlon Olympic event became available to women, Amy spent two summers training at Ft. Sam Houston Military Base, Texas, in 1977 and 1978. She trained in swimming (distance), fencing (epee), pistol shooting (revolving target), horse jumping (unfamiliar horse drawn by lot) and running (cross country), and became proficient in all. At age 15 she participated in the 2nd National Modern Pentathlon Championships for women and placed 9th overall out of 17 entries. Another love was basketball. She was on the Fairview High and the Ripon College teams playing center because of her 6'1” height. For many years she and Richard have been avid fans of the Colorado Buffs women's team. After college, Amy first worked for six years at Aetna Life Insurance as a communications analyst in Hartford, CT. She returned to Boulder and was employed by Hatfield Associates as a telecommunication consultant. In 1992 she was President of Indian Peaks Communications and two early contracts were to install security equipment in a gold mine in Tajikistan and to install wiring for all the concourse gates at the new Denver International Airport. By 1994 she was President of Alpine Communications. She found time to be Ocean Journey Aquarium's original volunteer diver coordinator in Denver and she loved swimming in the tanks with all species. Most recently she was CEO at Video Accessory Corp. in Longmont. Memberships included: Alpha Xi Delta sorority, National Rifle Association, Professional Association of Diving Instructors, Colorado Mounted Rangers H Troop where she was proud to hold the rank of Sergeant, and she was a Certified Master Anti-terrorism Specialist since 2008. She served on the Board of Directors of the University of Colorado Alumni Association from 2008 to 2010. Amy was preceded in death by her grandparents, Donald P. and Thedia S. Barnes and Dr. Jean H. and Frances W. Dirstine. She is survived by her husband, Richard Frey; her brother Stephen D. Barnes (Lani); stepdaughters Julie Frey and Barbara Frey; sister-in-law Helen Frey, two uncles Dr. Erik (Tina) and Craig (Mikaela) Barnes; aunt Joy (Edward) Tormey; step-grandchildren Sara and Corbin Frey; nephews Forrest and Ansel Barnes; numerous cousins, many close friends; two cats, Porky and Spencer; and two 130 lb. Leonburger dogs Scuba and Nitrox. Amy, the whole family was so proud of you! According to her will, cremation has taken place and no service is planned. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made through the CU Foundation to the Amy Barnes Frey Fellowship Fund to provide student support for the Interdisciplinary Telecommunications Program. Contact Teresa Cobleigh at teresa.cobleigh@cufund.org or (303) 735-2803. Donations can also be made to the Children's Tumor Foundation, Colorado Chapter, P.O. Box 101357, Denver, CO 80250. Checks should include “Colorado Chapter” in the memo line and an insert should state that the donation is in memory of Amy Barnes Frey. This donation will also honor Amy's step-grandchild, Sara Frey, who suffers from Neurofibromatosis.