Posted on 11/19/2012 8:38:45 AM PST by DollyCali
Bill at the first Honor Flight out of Akron. He was delighted to chat with Bob Dole.
At a Walter Reed Freep - with Bert, Kristinn.
He really enjoyed the WH correspondent dinner FReep & time afterward in hotel lounge
He may have been old.. but he wasn't stupid!!!!
A gentle and kind man has returned to his maker. He was a patriot, FReeper, WW2 Army/AF veteran who received the Bronze Star, and very very young at heart. He buried two wifes to Breast Cancer & himself struggled with prostrate cancer and was involved with me in the Prostate Cancer support group(I was facilitator). He served on various groups in Hudson Ohio in think tanks, music groups and Western Reserve Academy.
His last couple of years were spent in a group home & he was sadly removed from the support group of friends, clubs, activities and surroundings he enjoyed for over 40 years. He was still driving but there in NJ was very little he had interest in viewing or exploring - alone. In Ohio, he was on the go continually and busied himself at church, singles dances, New Orleans Jazz events, hiking, beaching, movies, dining out, organizations, Tea Party groups, GOP clubs for starters.
I have a few links that I was able to find that you might find enjoyable to browse. He attended several FReeps in DC, countless in Ohio(esp during pre election times) and as this is a tribute thread I want to give my tributes to a dear friend whom I will miss. We chatted on phone several times a week & emailed daily.
He enjoyed the various forums and Facebook but his VERY OLD computer and lack of skills to navigate, yet alone sign in with password to the sites was problematic. He was the only one in his group home with a computer & no help was available.
Bill and I were involved with a Christian church that was very contemporary. It met at a movie theater & had rap, hip hop, rock music. The preacher was solid & biblically accurate. In the course of the time thre Bill was in one of the videos.. Rockin' Bill!
83 year old FReeper/WW2 vet/bronze star - MAKES THE ROCK SCENE
Here is a thread where he was at Bethesda FReeping Fred Phelps (AKA - the creep)
Fred Phelps FReeped at Bethesda Naval Hospital
He posted only one thread here at FR & it was an accident. The Viking kitties were circling their prey as I was alerted & helped set things straight. He thought he was replying to a thread but instead started his own... It was comical (to me).
He Loved the Walter Reed FReeps. Here is a thread with some pix of one he attended.
FReep 54 at Walter Reed, April 28 (Heavy graphics, Join us Cinco de Mayo!
For the Finest a few years ago I did a tribute to WW2 and include both Bill & FReeper Bevlar(Larry).
A Few of FR's Finest..Every Day..02-6,7-07..WW2: The War, The Era, The Monument, The FReeper Vets
I have a lot of video & photos that I have on both YouTube & Facebook. Here is my archives of pix from Facebook - many FReepers in the pix along the way.
My Buddy Bill
There are more threads & links but this is all I have the energy to now research.
IMHO, dear DollyCali, he IS living forever! But it is true that we miss the face of the dear friend while we are yet living in this physical part of the Universe and they have gone before us.
Thank you for notifying us of his passing, and please accept my sincerest condolences for your loss.
Thank you as well for posting the wonderful pictures of this precious hero soul.
Welcome home , Faithful servant.
May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in peace.
I am sorry for the loss of your friend.
May this true patriot from the greatest generation rest in peace.
Rest in peace, Bill Barrows.
I realize I a couple of days late to this. Prayers for the family, first off. There are so many here that make this site awesome. I don’t know - really know - any of you. Any. But everytime something like this comes along, I feel for you. From Unreconstructed Georgia, I hope everyone avffected by this takes solacve in their respective faiths and finds a way to celebrate Thanksgiving anyway. Remember what that Good Book says - The day of death is better than the day of life.
Thank you Sir for giving this nation your all. I grew up in freedom because of men like you. I wish my son could as well, but there are not enough real men left to protect our Republic. RIP hero.
RIP
I would liked to have personally known this gentleman and hero. RIP.
RIP
FReeper Wheelbarrow, USA/USAF
Hand salute to you, Bill.
Take your seat beside the right hand of God. You’re missed but not forgotten.
God bless him. May his family and friends find comfort in fond memories, and in that you got to know him, unlike some of us.
RIP
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