James Manley Barnett

Manley James Barnett was born to the late Clarissa Barnett and the eldest of thirteen children born to the late Oscar Rickard in Trelawny, Jamaica, West Indies… and what a special child he was. After bravely fighting a long illness, he succumbed on Tuesday, February 28, 2012. Mr. James, as he is fondly called by his friends and acquaintances, migrated to the United States in 1983, where he lived with his wife, Ivy Barnett in Louisville, Kentucky. He subsequently relocated here to Baltimore, Maryland his adopted city, where he worked for twelve years with the Kenilworth Corporation. He later started his own business using his carpentry and building skill-set as a specialty trade. James was generous to his family and most hospitable to relatives and friends, and when I use the word “hospitable”… that is a gross understatement. He was most generous with his time and talents, always willing to help others with their projects. The common notion was that he spent time and resources to work on other people’s houses, while ignoring his never ending repairs and addition to his own house. James even traveled to New Jersey and Connecticut to work on his individuals relatives’ houses. James was very outgoing and one of his many joys was to make others happy. He was resilient in that he had many of life’s challenges. Whether he was going through life’s ups and downs, he showed no signs of going through hardships; he usually just weathered the storm. Like his late father before him, he was physically diminutive, a man of small stature, but had a heart as big as the size of Mount Rushmore. He will be surely missed by everyone who ever came in contact with him. He enjoyed mentoring youth by sharing his life experiences with them, he was steadfast in his desire to nurture them, that they may get on and stay on the right tracks of life. Please ask yourself, “What would have happened to you and you… and you, if James had not passed this way; or walked this? Think about it, this is a real profound question, rhetorical though it may be. Manly Barnett had made the transition from this temporal life and now he is called home to the Lord before His Throne of Grace. James is survived by many loved ones, who are left to cherish his wonderful memories: He loved his children very much, Norman Barnett, Norma Patricia Barnett, Everton Barnett, Sharon Barnett, Petrona Milton, Vincent Green, Glenroy Paul Barnett, Sharniece Barnett and Chancy Barnett (predeceased). He is survived by: his love of thirteen grandchildren, two great-grandchildren and Damien Nelson (predeceased). He is survived as well by his ten brothers, and two sisters.

Tributes

James Manley Barnett

June 12, 1934 - February 28, 2012