Barry C. Sample

Barry Carlton Sample

March 2, 1951 – April 27, 2025

ALBANY, New York (April 29, 2025)—Barry Carlton Sample passed away on April 27, 2025, at his residence in Albany, New York. He was 74.

Born in 1951, Barry “Chuck” Carlton Sample was a native of Long Island, New York. He came from humble beginnings on his family’s potato farm. During his early teens, he spent his summers working with Long Island fishermen, who initially thought he was too young for the demanding work—but soon learned that Barry was a hardy and determined youth.

However, more than the farm and the sea, it was music that stayed with Barry throughout his journey from a teenager into adulthood. From a young age, he took to singing and playing the guitar. He performed in bands in high school and during his college years in the late 1960s and 1970s. He continued his passion for music throughout his life. An avid lover of jazz, blues, rock ‘n’ roll, and, of course, Jimi Hendrix, he attended jazz and blues festivals and clubs in New York City and Montreal yearly.

Barry was an ardent lover of the arts and the theater, especially the plays of August Wilson. He closely followed the development of the annual St. Martin Book Fair and was a great friend and confidant of the indie press, House of Nehesi Publishers.

Barry was an alumnus of the State University of New York at Albany, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree, graduating magna cum laude in 1973, followed by a Master’s degree from the university’s School of Criminal Justice in 1977. From 1978 to 1982, he served as a lecturer in African American history, social science, and public policy at SUNY Albany.

His commitment to education and public service laid the foundation for an active career in public administration and political advisory roles—positions for which he became widely respected in Albany, New York City, and Washington, D.C., both in community and political circles.

While he did enter the corporate sector—serving as President of Instructional Systems Incorporated in New Jersey from 2013 until his passing—Barry Sample held several prominent public positions between 1993 and 2013. These included Chair of New York Gaming Commission; Deputy Director of State Operations for the New York State Executive Chamber; Chief of Staff at New York State Office of the State Comptroller; Director of Intergovernmental Affairs & Community Relations of New York State Comptroller’s Office; and Deputy Budget Director at the New York State Division of the Budget.

Barry Sample’s public service career began at the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, where he held several roles between 1981 and 1993. These included Deputy Director of Criminal Justice; Executive Deputy Commissioner; Chief of the Bureau of Program Development and Planning; and Senior Criminal Justice Program Analyst.

In 1985, he married his devoted wife, Jacqueline Lake, marking the beginning of a lifelong partnership alongside his distinguished public service.

Barry counted among his friends, colleagues, and associates several prominent figures from his public and private careers. However, he remained a private, serious, and deeply caring man who held his family closest to his heart, with his beloved Jacqueline as its heartbeat. He offered a rare glimpse into this deeply personal side in 2012, at the funeral of his 26-year-old son, Bakari “Baki” Masso Lake-Sample, when he quietly said to the congregation, “Baki was my best friend.”

To several of Barry’s closest family and friends, he will be remembered not just with admiration, but as their dearest confidant. As his brother-in-law, author Lasana M. Sekou recalled: “Barry was my wise counselor.”

Barry leaves his beloved wife of 40 years, Jacqueline Lake-Sample, his dear daughter, Serwa Sample-Adams, and son-in-law, Corey Adams. He is survived by his sister, Jeanne Wilson; his nephews, Jason Wilson and Gary Wright; and a number of nieces, nephews, family, and friends throughout New York, Virginia, in the Caribbean islands of St. Martin, Curaçao, and Aruba, and in Europe.

The funeral service for Barry Carlton Sample will be held at New Comer Cremations & Funerals, 181 Troy-Schenectady Road, Watervliet, NY 12189, on Saturday, May 3, 2025. The calling hour will begin at 10:00 a.m., followed by the funeral service at 11:00 a.m. Interment will take place at Graceland Cemetery, 680 Delaware Avenue, Albany, NY 12209.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Barry Sample’s memory to the Bakari Lake-Sample Scholarship at Macedonia Baptist Church, 26 Wilson Avenue, Albany, NY 12205. To leave a message of condolence for the family and for directions to funeral live stream, please visit www.newcomeralbany.com/obituaries.

Farewell, Barry.