Grimes. He passed away in Riverside, CA on June 26, 2020.
The family moved to Beaverton, OR in 1965, and then to Concord, CA where they lived for a year and
then moved back to Beaverton. Barry was educated in Beaverton schools and graduated from
Beaverton High in June of 1981. He attended Portland State U for one year and then joined the
United States Navy in 1983 . After boot camp he was stationed in San Diego, CA and assigned to the
USS Leahy, a guided missile cruiser. On the USS Leahy he was a radioman for nine years. He went
on many WESTPAC tours on ship, being at sea for many months at a time. He visited Japan, the
Philippines, Singapore, Guam, Hawaii, Hong Kong and many other Pacific destinations. He also
spent time on the Indian ocean and was able to explore a bit in Kenya. He enjoyed his time in Africa
and recalled many interesting sites there. He reenlisted in the Navy in 1987 w ith his reenlistment
ceremony on the Queen Mary in Long Beach, CA. He had a post in Bremerton, WA at the Puget
Sound Navy Shipyard and submarine base for a short time while the USS Leahy was under repair.
He spent the last years of his Navy career in western Australia, s tationed at Harold E. Holt . He loved
Australia and embraced the culture there and the people. He was honorably discharged from the
Navy in 1993.
By this time, most of Barry’s family had moved to southern California and after his discharge from the
Navy he joined his family in Los Angeles.
Barry had a passion for technology early on starting with a CB radio and then to his mastery later of
computers and gaming on xbox.
Barry was very artistic and loved to draw and paint. Family members have artwork on their walls that
he created. He was musically inclined and took piano lessons and then played by ear. He was in
Concert Choir and theater classes at Beaverton High and performed in both. He took lead roles in
Aladdin and West Side Story. He also joined theater at Portland State U and performed in a play
there.
He had an appreciation for movies and music from an early age and he kept a large inventory of
favorites on video and even as a youth was the same about music, discovering rock n roll favorites
such as Queen, Pink Floyd, Billy Joel, Paul Simon and Elton John.
He was interested in photography and took many photos. He loved to travel and had visited
England, Norway, Canada and Mexico, as well as many states in the US. He had a wonderful sense
of humor and was always a “glass half full” kind of guy. He cooked a lot and enjoyed talking about his
latest concoction and how it turned out. He often gave restaurant reviews online. He had many
interests with entomology being one of his latest. He researched the behavior of the Mantis and
studied their habitat and diet then owned several Mantises and photographed them.
One of the highlights in Barry’s life was the birth of his nephew, Derek Grimes, in 2006. Many days
and nights were spent playing with Derek and showing and teaching him new things. Barry adored his
nephew and enjoyed retelling all of the cute things he said and did. Being with Derek was one of
Barry’s great joys.
Barry loved the ocean and as a youth, enjoyed weekends and summers at the family’s beach home in
Rockaway, OR. Many good times with family and friends were had during his growing up years. In
California he would take annual trips to Ventura with family and many train rides to Morro Bay with his
nephew and brother. He loved to go fishing and crabbing; even from childhood he was a risky eater
and always courageous in trying new exotic sea foods. After the Navy, and before his career with
the State of California, he had a position with a marine company going out on a fishing boat and
assisting with shark and other marine life autopsies. Barry was adventurous and always ready to try
something new and different. He had a passion to learn about and enjoy single malt whiskey from
Scotland in hopes of some day visiting Scotland.
He was a blessing to have at any function, party, or gathering. He could talk to anyone and keep the
conversation going and have them laughing; he was charming, and people liked him and were quite
taken with him. Yet he was always sensitive and considerate of others’ feelings. He will be terribly
missed.
He enjoyed going to Las Vegas which he did throughout the years. He wasn’t a gambler but enjoyed
the nice hotels, shows and restaurants.
Barry worked for the State of California for many years in the Department of Motor Vehicles starting in
2004. When the Call Center in North Hollywood planned to close to open a new Call Center in
Riverside, CA, Barry was dedicated to stay with the team and moved to Riverside CA. He enjoyed
his work there and the people he worked with and made many friends. He participated in the extra
activities his team engaged in such as group costumes, chili cook-offs and other holiday events.
Many of his teammates have expressed how much they had enjoyed working with Barry.
He was preceded in death by grandmothers Hilda Franklin, Naomi Ruby Hockett and aunt Bonnie Jo
Wood.
Surviving Barry are his mother, Judy Marlene Grimes of Sherwood, OR; father Dennis Sydney
Grimes of Hurricane, UT; brother Darin Jay Grimes and husband Jonathan Abram Manion, nephew
Nathan Julius Jordan Grimes-Manion of Portland, OR; brother Eric Stephen Grimes and wife Kyle
Lynn Grimes, nephew Derek Sidney Grimes of Glendale, CA; uncle William Hugh (Bill) Hockett and
wife Nancy of Portland, OR; cousin Aaron William Hockett and wife Catherine of Portland, OR; cousin
Jennifer Jo Swanson of Newberg, OR.
Instead of flowers, if someone wishes to donate to a charity in Barry’s name, he held the
Wounded Warrior Project https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/ and Veterans Association of
America http://vetsaa.org/477323 in high regard.
Notification of a funeral service in Oregon will go out later in the year.
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