Email

Print

As we mentioned at the top, a memorial service was held this afternoon in San Pedro for Sir Barry Bowen. The official funeral ceremony will be held tomorrow in Belize City followed by the burial in Cayo where his parents are also buried. But San Pedro is the place Bowen called home and as part of their tribute to Bowen, the San Pedro Airstrip will be renamed the Barry Bowen Municipal Airstrip. Our coverage of the tragedy continues with the story of an island in mourning.

Keith Swift Reporting,
There was a steady stream of visitors to the Bowen crash site on Saturday morning. Among them were Bowen and Bowen employees but most were just regular residents who trekked to the remote area. There wasn’t much to see because the plane was covered with a tarp. According to Mayor Elsa Paz…

Elsa Paz, Mayor of San Pedro
“I can say that San Pedro is in mourning. San Pedro is very sad, we have lost the biggest man in the island.”

Simply put, Barry Bowen was larger than life here in San Pedro. Apart from the Bowen and Bowen bottling operation, he also co-owned the island academy with his wife and San Pedro was where he called home.

Elsa Paz,
“He was one of the biggest contributor when it comes to any special events on the island or for any kind of assistance that San Pedro needs, he was always there for San Pedro. He was one that never said no to San Pedro. He is a man that had a big heart for San Pedro.”

A big heart and an even larger wallet. In February 2006 Sir Barry Bowen helped finance this bridge connecting north and south San Pedro. To Ramon Nunez, the owner of Ramon’s Village, Sir Barry was a friend.

Ramon Nunez, Ramon’s Village
“Barry Bowen was my good friend. He always came to me to get advice from me and he was a fantastic person. He was a big donor for this community. When I started my hospital he donated $100,000 to my hospital fund. It is a big loss, everybody is going to be mourning for Barry because the man was just a fantastic person.”

Bowen’s properties -including Bowen and Bowen, his home, and the Island Academy occupied this entire block of Coconut Drive. But he never flaunted his wealth.

Elsa Paz,
“I know a lot of San Pedranos and a lot of Belizeans can remember the slogan that we have in San Pedro that says, ‘no shoes, no shirt, no problem.’ That was Barry.”

And now an island has to come to terms with his death.

Ramon Nunez,
“I couldn’t believe it. I was shocked. My daughter was the one who called me and I was shocked and I still can’t believe it.”