Captain Charles M. Barker: A Biographical Album

By Jennafer Barker Leach

Who's the most interesting person in your family? That person who has all the interesting stories, unique experiences... cool stuff locked up in the safe? For me, it is my dad, Captain Charles M Barker. To know him now, you might think he's an unassuming southern gentleman. He once called himself a grumpy old curmudgeon. He is actually neither of those things. Living in the south now, but originally from Pennsylvania. Not grumpy, but a pragmatist with a sense of humor who has little patience for foolishness. And his unassuming nature is a well-deserved respite from a career full of heavy responsibility, travel to exotic places and both a front row seat to and a "behind the scenes" participation in historical events. Captain Barker's life and military career has been a bit of a mystery. He tends to keep his stories to himself. He has a few souvenirs of his career on a wall or tucked in a bookcase, but mostly stored up in the eaves of his Cape Cod style house. Stacks of folders containing awards and accolades stuck on the top shelf of the spare bedroom closet. Digging through desk drawers, prying and asking friends and family to go down memory lane were some sources of information. Coming up with wily ways to get him to talk about an experience while secretly recording him on the phone was another. Everything done on the sly because we wanted to surprise him with this project. Getting former officers to share stories they remembered had the added benefit of rekindling friendships, sparking conversations between people who had not talked with each other in years. All this for the purpose of preserving a personal history that is just interesting. The rare, spontaneous conversations when he gives insights to history that I always wished someone was writing down. Oral tradition tends to lose the facts and details, so writing it all down in one place is a gift of preservation and will certainly be cherished.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0CPJYTFMC
• ISBN13: 9798870856896
• Release Date: December 2023
• Publisher: Independently published
• Length: 134 Pages
• Weight: 0.57 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.3" x 6.0"