February 13, 1956 ~ February 24, 2023

Barry F. Leahy, 67, of Newbury died at  home on Friday, February 24, 2023, with  his family by his bedside, following two  months of treatment for small cell  carcinoma. He lived in Newbury, MA, for  over 30 years and loved our woods, fields,  rivers and the ocean.  

Barry trained to be a machinist at a young  age, going on to work predominantly in the  aerospace industry. He took a brief break  from this work to earn a degree in forestry  management, which included a summer  internship in the Petawawa National Forest  in Ontario where he experienced controlled  burns, moose traffic jams and the world’s  most ferocious blackflies. This experience  helped nurture his life-long interest in the  landscape and fauna of New England — our trees, animals, birds and flowers — as  well as the ancient stone walls that  sectioned off the original farms of the area. 

Barry worked his way up from machinist to  manufacturing engineer and traveled  across the U.S. and throughout Europe for  his employers. He worked aboard maritime  training ships, on desert military bases and  overseas with Norwegian and German  engineers. Barry was a longtime member of  the North End Boat Club in Newburyport,  MA, where he served as secretary for many  years and docked his Grady White, the  Martha Ruth. He loved fishing for striped  bass, flounder and even tuna if he was  lucky. 

A favorite travel destination was Newfoundland, where Barry and his family  spent many summers chasing magnificent icebergs, acquiring treasures made of  bone, stone and fur, and making lifelong  friends. 

Barry loved his camp in Starks, Maine,  where he put his extensive knowledge of  machinery and forestry to work on his 14 acres of peaceful woods and meadows. He  spent many happy hours there harvesting  wood, mowing fields, observing nature,  cooling off in the Sandy River and trading  stories with friends. 

Barry leaves his wife of 40 years, Martha,  and his daughter Margaret, her partner Carl  Unger and son Calvin (whom Barry claimed  as a step-grandson and dubbed Calvonicus  or, some days, Calvinski) of Amesbury, MA.  

He is survived by his brothers: Michael and  wife MB Maughan of Waquoit, MA; Kevin of  Cape Neddick, Maine; Brian and wife Daysi  of Georgetown, MA; Terry and wife Robyn of West Newbury, MA; his sister Mary Ward  and husband Bill of Springfield, VT; his  sisters-in-law Jackie Leahy of Stoneham  and Linda Leahy of Marshfield, MA, and  many nieces and nephews. He is  predeceased by his parents, Thomas and  Margaret Leahy of Stoneham, MA, his  brother Stephen of Marshfield, MA, and his  brother Darin of Stoneham, MA.  A celebration of Barry’s life will be held at  the Elks Hall, 25 Low St. Newburyport, on  Sunday, March 19, 1:00-4:00 p.m.  Donations in Barry’s name can be made to Starks Enrichment & Education Society (SEEdS), 57 Anson Road, Starks, ME  04911.https://www.starksme.com/seeds