Feb. 12, 2002 – A Black History Month program will honor the memory of Virgin Islander Wilfred A. Barry at 7 p.m. Friday at Chase Auditorium in the Business Administration Building, B-110, on the St. Thomas campus of the University of the Virgin Islands.
The speaker will be Conrad Hoover, Barry's longtime colleague and friend and a U.S. marshal in the territory.
A release from the sponsoring African Diaspora Youth Development Foundation notes that the program is free and that young people especially are invited.
After graduating from Charlotte Amalie High School, Barry entered the U.S. Army. In 1975, he joined the V.I. Police Department; by 1983 he was named director of the Narcotics Strike Force. He became a deputy U.S. marshal in 1987, rose to supervisor and, just months before his death at the age of 46 in 1999, he became the chief deputy U.S. marshal for the District of the Virgin Islands.
The highlight of his career, according to the release, was his selection by former President George Bush as a recipient of the Daily Points of Light Award.
Barry was a mentor to young people and a frequent speaker on crime prevention. He also was a writer, a philanthropist and founder of the Natural Mystic Award, a scholarship for students in V.I. schools. Following his death a scholarship was established in his memory to assist local high school graduates seeking careers in law enforcement.
Quoting from the Source article reporting his death: "A fervent campaigner to keep young people from getting involved in lives of crime, Barry was known for his riveting and real-life approach to letting them know what would happen if they did so. His show-and-tell sessions typically involved handcuffs, shackles and, often, convicted criminals to talk about their use first-hand."
