William Barry Hall

Barry was a beloved husband to Diana for 57 years. They were known for their love and their dedication to traveling, flying, cruising, volunteering in their community and spending time with family.

Throughout his life, Barry achieved many accomplishments in both business and his personal life, touching the lives of countless individuals through his volunteerism and leadership. Barry graduated from the United States Merchant Marine Academy (Class of 1966) as a marine engineer and he was a sailor, private pilot, airplane builder, modeler and classic car collector. He was an avid fan of the ocean – taking family trips to Nags Head, NC and Clearwater Beach, FL, and later to their beach condo in Panama City Beach, FL. He was a leader at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Executive for the Boy Scouts of America, and Scoutmaster at Troops 1776 and 479 in Marietta, GA.

An engineer’s engineer, after graduating Barry served as a merchant marine officer sailing around the world, worked as a nuclear test engineer in the Norfolk Naval Shipyard, and was a professional engineer, project manager, and vice president for several engineering consulting firms. Whether he was in the engine room of an oceangoing merchant vessel, running nuclear test procedures during a refueling of the first nuclear powered aircraft carrier (USS Enterprise CVN-65), or managing the construction of a Budweiser plant in the US, a communication tower in Botswana, or a Coca Cola plant in Ireland; Barry was known and lauded for his detailed note taking, sharp intellect, determined work ethic, ethical leadership, and absolute precision in speech and manner. Although these were his professional hallmarks, he was these things and so much more to the people he loved.

A consummate builder, fixer, and restorer, Barry’s garage and basement are wall-to-wall with tools, projects, pieces, and parts from past, current, and future ventures – a mélange of lessons learned, unfinished items in progress, and success after success in picture and physical form. Barry applied his talents to his multitude of family and classic cars for normal maintenance and when his sons scratched them or wrecked them. He also prepared and repaired the sailboats he sailed on the lakes of Georgia and the oceans off North Carolina and Florida to keep them in top shape, and the many models of cars, boats, and airplanes he built for himself and repaired for his sons. His final project, his dream, to build a plane and engine in his own basement was realized through the 4000 hours he put into his Waiex Sonex airplane. Everyone that saw his handiwork called Barry a master builder, a moniker he would never apply to himself, and were awestruck with the level of detail in preparation he performed and execution he was able to achieve.

Barry’s many professional acquaintances and friends that he kept in touch with and regularly checked on him are a testament to how he treated the people around him in the same way he treated projects and past times. From the Merchant Marine Academy Class of 66, to peers and employees at Lockwood Greene and CH2M Hill, to the staff and congregation at Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, to his pilot friends – both model and full-sized aircraft, to the Romeo Classic Car buddies and everyone else he came in contact with – the front desk staff he awarded “Manager of First Impressions” and the waitresses at his favorite haunts that knew his name and order and to make sure his coffee was boiling hot – he was not just somebody, he was “Barry” and sometimes “Mr. Hall”.

Barry will be deeply missed by his sister, Jane Gore; his sons Scott and Erik, their spouses Wendy and Melissa; Grandchildren: Reed and his wife Emily, Madison and her fiancé Bayley, Jackson, Grace, and his many friends and colleagues. Barry was preceded in death by his wife Diana of 57 years. Even though he has gone to the Heaven to be with his Father, Barry will live on through the projects he completed, the knowledge he passed along to his family and friends, unfinished projects he has passed on to others, and the relationships he fostered with family and friends. His final thoughts to all of us are likely the same words he had on the console of all his aircraft, “Don’t do anything stupid.” He rarely ever did.

Barry's departure leaves a void in our hearts, but his legacy will forever be cherished.

To offer your condolences and share cherished memories, please visit www.roswellfuneralhome.com.