Barry holds three court officer positions with Holy Trinity 1633: Recording Secretary, Financial Secretary, and Youth Director. He has been a member of Catholic Order of Foresters since 1964.
Lately, Barry has been involved with Holy Trinity Parish’s fall grounds clean-up and a Matching Funds event to benefit the parish’s Heating and Cooling Fund.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.
Connor: What is the Holy Trinity Heating & Cooling Fund, and why did Holy Trinity 1633 donate Matching Funds toward it?
Barry: Holy Trinity’s Heating and Cooling Fund was created to raise money for replacing the boiler in our church.
After the Finance Council investigated different systems, they decided to put a completely new forced air heating system in with central air. The old system was steam with radiators.
This was a huge project for our little parish of 250 families, so Holy Trinity 1633 decided to help by hosting a Matching Funds event to help them reach their goal, which they did.
Connor: What was the inspiration for the fall clean-up and how were you involved?
Barry: Holy Trinity Parish is blessed with beautiful tree-covered grounds by its church and Catholic school. However, in the fall there’s a plethora of leaves that need to be removed. This process is a lot of work for the retired person that mows the lawn. My house is adjacent to the parish grounds, and seeing as how I am a member of the Finance Council, I decided to help the groundskeeper. I reached out to other Holy Trinity 1633 members, and they agreed to help too.
We are expanding [the clean-up] into the spring and will be clean the grounds and assist with planting flowers and putting mulch in the beds. Some of the [Holy Trinity 1633] members also volunteer their equipment.
Connor: How long have you been a COF member, and how long have you volunteered?
Barry: I have been a member of Holy Trinity Court 1633 my entire life. My father, Don, was a member and very involved.
He got my brother and myself involved as opportunities arose where we could use our talents to help the court. The older I get, the more I volunteer, but I think that happens to quite a few people.
Article by Connor McEleney