Barry Richard Bainton

Barrington - Barry Richard Bainton passed away on Monday, March 11, 2024, surrounded by his wife Jeanne and family members.

Barry was born on August 8, 1941, in Providence, Rhode Island, to Walter Bainton and Natalie Norton Bainton. He grew up on the East Side of Providence with his younger brother, Wayne.

After graduating from Hope High School, Barry continued his education at Brown University. For one year at Brown, he participated in Navy ROTC and worked his way through his undergraduate semesters cleaning the dorms and overseeing the pool. Barry was in the graduating class of 1963, achieving a bachelor's degree in anthropology.

From there, he joined the Peace Corps, which had been recently formed, and was sent to Peru for two years. While in Peru, Barry was assigned to run a USAID program focused on supporting volunteers in small villages, becoming proficient in Spanish.

Following the Peace Corps, Barry chose to continue his studies, graduating from the University of Arizona with a master's in anthropology and a PhD in applied anthropology, and also a master's degree in international business from the Thunderbird School of Global Management at Arizona State University in Phoenix, Arizona.

Overall, Barry lived in Arizona for 20 years, where, in addition to his studies, he worked with the Tohono O'odham (formerly Papago) and Pima Native American tribes, providing legal services, grant writing, and research. He also continued to work with USAID, including on a project in Yemen, through which he learned Arabic.

Ultimately Barry chose to come back to Rhode Island to reunite with his family and spend time with his parents, brother, nephew, and niece. He joined the First Baptist Church of Providence where he met Jeanne Kolb, whom he married in 2010. Jeanne has children and grandchildren from a previous marriage, many of whom were very close to Barry, considering him their grandfather.

Barry is survived by his wife, Jeanne Kolb, brother Wayne Bainton, sister-in-law Linda Bainton, nephew Joshua Bainton, niece Sarah Bainton Kahn and her husband, Zack Kahn, and great-nephews Elijah and Nathanael Kahn.

Barry is also survived by his stepchildren: Darrell Kolb, Jeffrey Kolb, Kimberly Kolb, as well as several step-granddaughters and great-grandchildren.

An invitation is extended to attend a Memorial Service in honor of Barry, held at the First Baptist Church in America, located at 75 North Main Street, Providence, Rhode Island, on April 6th, 2024, at 3:00 pm.