WILLIAM MCLEAN BARRY

Celebrating A Life Well Lived

William (Bill) McLean Barry, a man of extraordinary grace and strength, bravely fought a two-year battle with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF), a terminal lung disease that eventually brought him to Gainesville, Florida, where he was awaiting lung transplant at University of Florida Shands Hospital.  Bill said, Gainesville, would be his destination for freedom from his battle with this disease, one way or another. On the evening of March 8, 2018, upon facing insurmountable complications from his lung disease, he told his family he loved them, stoically declared his freedom, and departed from this world.

This very beloved father, grandfather, brother, spouse, and friend, who lived for bringing joy to his family and building his community, leaves behind a loving and powerful legacy. A Floridian since childhood, Bill graduated Cocoa High School in 1965. Shortly thereafter, through his signature grit and determination, Bill, achieved Launch Technician status by the age of 20, where he tested and installed flight hardware on the Saturn rockets for NASA’s Apollo lunar missions.  In 1995, Bill would become the very popular and honored Publisher and CEO for the Key West Citizen & Keys Media Group. Much to his joy and pride, he learned the newspaper was launched in 1904, as The Citizen, by his great uncle, Walter Thompson of Key West. His post at the Key West Citizen represented the culmination of a passion for the newspaper business ignited during his youthful days as a paperboy.  After his time with NASA, Bill returned his focus to journalism, taking a position with the Gannett Corporation’s, Florida Today, in Cocoa.  By his mid-thirties, Bill made his mark as Gannett’s youngest publisher upon taking the helm of, The Coloradoan, in Ft. Collins, CO; where, as publisher, he was instrumental in launching the Denver/Rockies edition of USA Today. Bill continued his success with Gannett until fate led him to the capstone of his newspaper career when he assumed leadership of the Key West Citizen.

A passionate supporter of cultural history and the arts, Bill served on many boards and supported many projects to enrich Key West and the Florida Keys. Bill’s most recent philanthropic work was with The Preservation Society for the restoration of the historic Schooner Western Union.  As chair of the Society, Bill successfully led the effort to obtain more than $800,000 in grants to restore, maintain and operate the flagship for the State of Florida and the City of Key West.  Bill remained an avid outdoor enthusiast throughout his life, whether sailing the waters off the Florida Keys or hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park, he was in his element and loved sharing those experiences with family and friends.  He is survived by his wife, Clara Taylor and his three children, Wendi, John and Daniel from his former marriage to Bonnie-Lee Bowman; his seven beloved grandchildren, and sisters Aurellia and Maryann.  Please join us in celebrating a life well lived.

The family requests that donations be made to the Schooner Western Union Preservation Society at http://schoonerwesternunion.causevox.com/