Alan William Barkley

Alan Barkley, 74, passed away on February 15th at Baptist Beaches hospital in Jacksonville Beach, Florida, after a period of declining health. He was born in Northern Ireland on April 25, 1951, and made his home in the US for almost 40 years, first in Jacksonville where he opened a branch for Bank of Scotland in 1988, then in San Francisco and for the past 8 years, in Ponte Vedra Beach.

He enjoyed a highly successful career in corporate banking, initially with British Linen Bank in London, then Bank of Scotland in Edinburgh, followed by Wells Fargo and BNP in San Francisco. In 2006 he was asked to become the Executive Director of the non profit organization Opportunity Education. He spent 11 years travelling to and providing educational materials for 1400 schools in the poorest areas of Africa, India and Sri Lanka.

He was a keen armchair sports fan and lifelong supporter of Liverpool FC. He enjoyed travelling to a wide range of exotic locations all over the world with his family and friends. From climbing Kilimanjaro and numerous safaris across Africa, to walking the streets of Paris, a city he loved, and enjoying many parts of France and Italy, to the mountains of Bhutan and Nepal and the beaches of Barbados, his life was never dull.

Alan is survived by his loving wife, Dianne; his son, Chris and daughter in law, Susan.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church, Ponte Vedra Beach, on March 5 at 11:30 am, with Father Andy Blaszkowski as celebrant.