Genevieve Barnhart oral history interview, 2014 July 24

In this interview, Bonnie’s Cone’s niece Ann McWhirter, her great-niece Genevieve Barnhart, and Ann’s husband Bill McWhirter share their memories of Bonnie Cone. They describe her persuasiveness and enabling of others, her motivation and work ethic, her positivity, her vision for Charlotte College and UNC Charlotte, and her sense of fashion. They recall Bonnie’s teaching years, her homes in Charlotte, her caring for her mother, and her involvement in Myers Park Baptist Church in Charlotte. They reflect on how she represented women, on her reaction to not being chosen as Chancellor of UNC Charlotte, and on her and her family’s feelings about her being buried on campus. Ms. Barnhart recounts how she came to live with and help care for her Great-Aunt Bonnie and attend UNC Charlotte. Mrs. McWhirter recalls a cross-country road trip with Bonnie and explains how Bonnie was like a mother to her. Other topics include Bonnie Cone’s education at Duke, her common sayings, what her opinion would be of football at UNC Charlotte, and her friendships with people such as Oliver and Marie Rowe, Woody Kennedy, J. Murrey Atkins, and Chancellors Dean Colvard, E. K. Fretwell, and James Woodward.