George V. Barber

George V. Barber began life in Richmond Hill, Queens, NY on May 21, 1942.  Through the 77 years of his life, he was known as an educator, mentor and community activist. He loved acting and singing in HS and dabbled in performance throughout his life. He was proud of earning his Eagle Scout award. He always credits being an Eagle scout with his landing his first job at Sachem HS.  Scouting was a special bond between him and his family throughout his life. He often told stories of the boy scout hikes he would have with his troop and sharing that time with his Father. After he started a family of his own, he was a co-leader of a girl scout troop for his daughters.

George was part of a founding class of Stony Brook University. He began his studies at Coe Hall in Oyster Bay when the school was called State University College on Long Island.  In 1962, the school moved to Stony Brook, NY where he completed his degree in Sociology / Anthropology. George continued his studies at Hofstra earning his MS and attaining both his attendance officer and educational administration certificates.

At Sachem HS, his first job was as an attendance officer. As truancy officers became less important in schools, he moved to the classroom where he taught social studies. Later in his career he was department head for a group of 24.  He loved working with exchange students as well as the general population. He and his family were part of a teacher exchange program where they were able to spend a year in Adelaide, Australia. He was part of the Sachem family for over 30 years.

His summers were spent at Jones Beach and Wildwood State Park as part of the NYS Parkway Police. He was on the force 13 seasons.

Although family, teaching, co-leader of scout troop and parkway police kept him busy, he also found time to be Sunday School Director of the Setauket Presbyterian Church, as well as a volunteer Firefighter and EMT in the Setauket FD. He was a lieutenant at Station 2, department treasurer and later elected to the Board of Fire Commissioners.

George and his second wife, Deborah Wagner-Barber, became involved in teaching emergency medical training, CPR, First Aid and Crisis Management.  Board certified in School Crisis Response, they presented workshops at many conferences including the National EMS Instructors, International Fire Chiefs, National School Boards Assoc. and APCO.  After returning to his Virginia roots, he continued to teach classes and became a James City County CERT volunteer. He loved helping prepare people for emergencies, responding to them and mitigating the aftermath.

George died at Sentara Hospital May 26, 2019 losing his battle with bone cancer and emphysema. George is survived by his wife Deborah; his daughter Jennifer, son-in-law Andy and grandchildren Nicole, Casey and Christian; his daughter Catherine, son-in-law Josh and granddaughters Ashley and Sarah.

A memorial service will be held at King of Glory Lutheran church in Williamsburg, VA on Wednesday, June 12, 2019 at 11:30 am. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Setauket FD in NY or Jamestown Settlement in VA.