There are people in our community that you might hear about in the papers, or see photos of on social media, that you don’t really know that much about. They are pillars in the community and have served faithfully for years and years, yet the average citizen isn’t aware of all the sacrifices and selfless acts of kindness that have molded and shaped the community and given it the flavor and substance it enjoys today.
One of those unsung heroes is actually not “unsung” in the eyes of the more-involved residents of Fuquay-Varina. But because his work in the community comes from the heart and isn’t wrapped up in making a name for himself at the expense of others, many residents are not familiar with his accomplishments and his life of service.
Bob Barker graduated from Campbell University in 1965 and began working as the publisher and editor of a small newspaper in Apex, just north of here. It became apparent that the Apex downtown needed revitalization, so he got involved with trying to bring business back to Salem Street and ended up becoming the Mayor of Apex as a part of that effort. In 1972, he was part of a committee to secure candidates for the state senate from western Wake County, and when they couldn’t find anyone, he felt obligated to run for that office himself. He derived a great deal of satisfaction from serving at that level during his tenure as State Senator, and helped set up an Energy Department while he was in office.
In 1974, he stepped away from politics to concentrate on his business, eventually selling the newspaper and getting into the restaurant equipment sales business. In the early 1980’s, Bob’s company expanded into jail supplies and quickly grew into a regional operation covering much of the southeast. His business had a tremendous run in the 1980s, as the country’s drug culture transformed the jail population nationwide and everything in institutions had to be furnished by the government to keep drugs out of their facilities. That was a huge boom to the Barker’s business, and sales grew in double digits for a number of years.
In 1986, Bob moved the fast-growing company to downtown Fuquay-Varina, which at that time had about 3,000-4,000 residents. To his dismay, he quickly realized that the town was dying. Shops in the two downtown areas were empty and nothing was happening to attract new business to the community. “There was no vision for the future,” Bob remembers. Passionate about downtown revitalization, and capitalizing on his experience in Apex, Bob moved his family to Fuquay-Varina in 1988 and got involved with the Chamber of Commerce. After serving as President of the Chamber’s board of directors, he became mayor of Fuquay-Varina and helped the Fuquay-Varina New Century organization pave the way for what is now the Fuquay-Varina Downtown Revitalization Association. All of this work came out of an innate desire to serve his community, and Bob used his business leadership skills to create a lasting difference in the downtown areas of our community.
Bob’s greatest success has been the growth of his company and the fact that his two children, Robert Barker Jr. and Nancy Johns, have decided to join him in the family business. He takes great pride in the fact that The Bob Barker Company is now recognized worldwide in the detention field and as the #1 national supplier to prisons and detention centers. The company actively sells in India, Pakistan, China, South America, and Mexico, and is currently working to enter the European market as well. He feels his children and grandchildren will carry on the legacy built by him and his wife Pat over 40 years. But his passion for service and giving back to the community has never been more visible. “I enjoy that I have built a successful company,” he explains, “and it’s always been important to me that we give something back to the world. Gratitude is such a great thing – it brings such satisfaction and joy, that you can really appreciate doing a lot of things you wouldn’t normally do. It’s a better blessing to do something for someone else rather than myself.”
To that end, Bob and Pat have continued to find ways to donate their time and financial resources to the local community and nationwide. In addition to funding local programs in a variety of areas, the company’s philanthropic focus has shifted into an arena they know very well. Four years ago, they started The Bob Barker Company Foundation, which works to reduce recidivism across the country. Fifty percent of inmates return to prison within three years, and the Bob Barker Company has donated almost half a million dollars to programs that are designed to reduce that figure. Working closely with the criminal justice department head at Campbell University, Cathy Cowling, they have done a great deal of research on what skills inmates need to acquire before they are released and try to find work to support themselves and their families.
Inmates are truly hampered in most job searches once they have a conviction on their record, so making sure they can conduct themselves appropriately in society and have the skills to be attractive to employers is critical to helping them become productive. Programs that are designed to assist them with character-building, job interviews, and life skills are key to preventing their eventual return to prison as they give up on mainstream jobs and revert to old habits. The Foundation is slowly making an impact, with the 50% recidivism rate decreasing to as low as 17% in some areas where they have funded inmate preparation programs. The foundation started out in North Carolina, but more recently has begun helping programs across the country.
Bob Barker’s current passion, of course, is the Fuquay-Varina cultural arts and convention center project, which he has supported financially and logistically. His donation of a large warehouse and its adjacent land for parking has sparked an outpouring of activity in the community and a renewed appreciation for the growing arts community in Fuquay-Varina. “This project would revolutionize our town,”he explains animatedly. “The impact on our quality of life, let alone the economic impact of bringing visitors here to spend money in our restaurants and hotels, will attract new residents and businesses here overnight. We will become a destination place in Wake County.”
The quest to bring a cultural arts and convention center to Fuquay-Varina has been in play for over 20 years, but has recently gained momentum with Bob and Pat’s financial investment in the project. In addition to the donation of property, the Barkers have promised an additional $1 million toward the renovation and $25,000/year toward maintenance costs. The project is estimated at around $15 million, and Bob says they are quietly raising additional funds as they continue to work on logistics. “We expect the town’s investment will be about $5 million of the total, so it is truly going to be a private-public partnership when all is said and done.”
When asked about his biggest challenges so far, Bob explains that transferring the ownership of his business to his children ranks right up there. “It’s hard to give up your baby,” he says. The process is an ongoing one, with Bob still heavily involved in the daily operations and planning. He finds satisfaction and a sense of pride, however, in creating an organization that his children and grandchildren can carry forward into the future. With his son and daughter fully engaged in the business, Bob continues to play an active role with the company’s Board of Directors and the Bob Barker Company Foundation, while giving him time to continue his life of service to the community.
His story and the story of his family has been chronicled in a book entitled “I’m in Cells,” which can be purchased at the Bob Barker Company headquarters on Main Street, and at the Chamber of Commerce, as well as on Amazon.com. While he is not a “founding father” of Fuquay-Varina, Bob has certainly helped define our community over the last 25 years, and built a legacy that will have a lasting impact on our town for years to come.
