Family, State College hockey community mourn the loss of 24-year-old Kaleb Barth

Of all the memories Misty Dickson accumulated throughout her years as a hockey mother to her son Kaleb Barth, she settles on one from the Laurel Mountain Hockey League high school championships in 2019 that pitted Kaleb’s State College Little Lions against Central Cambria.

Dickson was among the contingent of State College hockey supporters who packed Pegula Ice Arena to support the Little Lions that spring day. To her, the reception her son received upon skating onto the ice perfectly encapsulated his impact on those who knew him.

“It was the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen, and Kaleb’s standing on the ice, and they start yelling ‘Kaleb Barth! Kaleb Barth!’” Dickson said. “Kaleb stands there and he starts raising his hands up in the air, and they start pounding the glass. They won that game.”

Barth died unexpectedly at 24 years old on March 1 due to a medical condition. He leaves a lasting impact and trail of memories for a local hockey community and friends who knew him best.

“If there’s anything I learned in this situation, it’s how many good people he knew — how many good people cared about him,” said Bill Dickson, Barth’s stepfather. “The people who have shown up here and have helped out, it’s incredible the love the people in this town have.”

Barth moved to State College with his family during his sophomore year of high school after spending much of his youth in Altoona. It was in Altoona that he was introduced to hockey — a sport he cherished since playing in his first competitive league at 10 years old.

Hockey is responsible for bringing Bladen Stratton and Barth together in Altoona when the two were youngsters. Stratton’s father, Mike, coached on Barth’s first competitive-league team. The Strattons moved to State College before Barth and his family, but the two were reunited years later when Barth walked into Stratton’s State High sophomore English class.

The pair became inseparable not long after. They hosted a high school graduation party together and became roommates and classmates at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Barth and Stratton created many memories during their years as friends, which include Stratton joining Barth and his paternal grandparents, Diana and Tom Barth, on family trips to Disney World. But he, too, pointed to a hockey memory as one of his most cherished of Barth.

“We were on the news one time and it was a video,” Stratton said. “He passed (the puck) to me and I scored. There’s still a video on his Instagram of it and on mine.”

A different kind of hockey memory from their youth league days in Altoona also stood out to Stratton.

“I remember him telling him he was mad at me because they needed me in the championship game, and I went on vacation instead of going to the championship game,” Stratton said with a laugh.

Barth’s love for hockey didn’t end after his youth and high school days.

The Nittany Hockey League dates back to 1980. Today, it gives older hockey players an outlet to compete and a strong sense of community among those on its different teams. Barth frequented the league’s Tuesday night pick-up games over the years.

This Tuesday, Nittany Hockey League players will gather at Pegula Ice Arena for a benefit skate in his memory.

Nittany Hockey League referee and local hockey staple Jay Horgas organized the event with the hope that the funds collected would go to the family to help with funeral expenses. Jay’s wife, Raeann, was Kaleb’s English teacher at State High.

“He was always warm and very friendly,” Horgas said. “He was quick to smile in any situation, and that’s a rare quality in this day and age.”

Horgas said the gesture, and others similarly planned, speak to the tight-knit nature of the local hockey community. For Misty Dickson, the show of love and support from that community — both young and old — has been overwhelming.

After learning of Barth’s death, Dickson said there were about 50 people that night at their Lemont home, which is well known to many young hockey players who have used the outdoor skating rink the family sets up each winter.

“By the time I got home from Pittsburgh, there was food, water and tissues,” she said. “They set up meal trains to go through the end of the month before I was even home yet.”

Although the avenues that led those to Barth over the last two-and-a-half decades vary, those who knew him during that time shared the same impressions when stating the impact he made on them. Kind, compassionate and selfless are just a few of the adjectives family and friends listed when describing him.

Those qualities were apparent at an early age to Barth’s maternal grandparents, Karen and Tommy Seal. Although the Seals now live in Virginia, no more than one mile separated them from Barth when they lived in Altoona. Barth was the first of the Seals’ grandchildren.

“From a young age, it was almost like he was intuitive to how other people were feeling,” Karen Seal said. “He knew if you were sad, he knew if you were happy, he was always there to make you laugh.”

The family has established the Kaleb Barth Hockey Scholarship through First National Bank in Kaleb’s honor. Noting the prohibitive financial requirements that accompany the sport, Misty Dickson said her hope is that funds raised through the scholarship will go to young hockey players to help fuel their passion for the sport.

“(Kaleb) would think it was a great idea,” she said.

Longtime friend and one-time roommate Jon Bristol traveled back to State College from Texas shortly after learning of Barth’s unexpected death. The two became close in high school not through hockey, but in part, due to their shared passion for video games. Rocket League and Call of Duty were among their favorite titles.

“Given the entirety of my life, I probably have more hours gamed with him than without,” Bristol said. “In high school and college, it was pretty much every day. ... I wouldn’t buy a game until I talked to him about it, and the same for him.”

Although Barth won’t be alongside or online with Bristol during gaming sessions in the future, a part of him will always remain with Bristol.

“He had a bunch of different laughs and giggles — just these little random giggles that he would do — and I’m going to miss all that,” Bristol said.

This story was originally published March 10, 2025 at 5:49 AM.