Barry Alan Belknap

Reverend Dr. Barry A. Belknap (1953-2026) spent his life guided by an internal moral compass, rooted in the belief that Christianity is a tool for love. Whether as a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War, feeding the hungry, or providing grief counseling, Barry, who was as incessantly curious and bookish as he was generous, leaves behind a legacy of giving, in a world he believed was increasingly being filled with takers.

Born and raised in Rochester, New York., Barry earned a Bachelor of Arts from Gordon College, a Master of Divinity from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry from McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago, Illinois. As he dedicated his life to leading with empathy, he detested how Christ's teachings could be twisted into a means of hatred and bigotry and, in recent years, co-opted and transformed into base nationalism.

His spiritual journey – which lasted six decades – took him all over the country. In his early career, Barry served as a pastoral intern at Cambridge Presbyterian Church in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His first pastoral call was at Christ Church, United Church of Scotland, in Bermuda in the 1970s. His first head pastorate was as a fraternal worker in partnership with the West Virginia Mountain Project in the Appalachian Mountains in the early 1980s. From 1985 to 1998, he served as pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana. From 1998 to 2007, he served as Associate Vice President of Academic Services at The University of Saint Francis. He also served as a pastor at Huntington Church of the Brethren, as a chaplain at Timbercrest Brethren Home in North Manchester, Indiana, and as the founding minister and church planter of Jonah's People at Good Shepherd Home in Fostoria, Ohio. At the time of his passing, he was a visitation pastor at First Wayne Street United Methodist Church. He often joked that he served every denomination in the Christian faith.

In addition to his work in ministry, he taught as an adjunct professor at Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne for two decades, instructing students in communications, business, and religion.

Humorous and gregarious, Barry was a humanist and lifelong pacifist. In addition to his Vietnam War activism, he supported efforts to combat poverty and hunger, collaborating with food banks and rescue missions to feed the hungry and shelter the unhoused. He also counseled many people with Alzheimer’s and memory loss and provided grief counseling.

His partner in these acts of kindness was his wife of 52 years, Donna (née Simpson) Belknap, who survives him. They met in high school in Rochester and enjoyed a lifetime of gardening and time on the water, both in Westport, Ontario, where Barry’s family had a lake cottage, and for many years on Cape Cod. Barry and Donna have one son, Ian, who lives in New York City with his wife, their daughter-in-law Lauren Rooney, and their granddaughter, Thea (age 7).

In lieu of flowers, donations and memorials can be made to Children’s Disaster Services./Brethen Ministries 1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120 or online: Children Disaster Services: https://donorbox.org/edf?designation=Children%27s%20Disaster%20Services%20(D39)