John Barwick

Chapel Hill John H. Barwick John Henry Barwick, 85, of Chapel Hill, NC died peacefully at UNC Hospital surrounded by his family on March 7, 2022 following a sudden illness. John was born in Grifton, NC on his family’s farm (TickBight) on February 3, 1937, to Samuel Coward Barwick and Glen Smith Barwick. He attended Contentnea High School in Lenoir County and graduated from NC State College in 1958 with a degree in Agricultural Economics. John was a proud Wolfpack supporter and a member of the Nu chapter of Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity. In 1961, he married Peggy Jean Kirkland of Scotland Neck, NC and they made their home in Windsor, NC when he took a management job with Spruill Farms Inc. John was a first lieutenant and served in the NC National Guard from 1959 to 1965.   In 1966, with two young children, Sam and Mary Glenn, in tow, John and Peggy embarked on a 30-year adventure as John pursued a career with British American Tobacco Company. He worked in Economic and Agricultural management in several countries and retired as Managing Director of the Tabacalera Nacional in Guatemala.  John and his family willingly assimilated into different cultures as they moved between El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala as John pursued his career with BAT. He made lifelong friends along the way.   John was an avid fisherman and a lover of all things that grow and are green. He was the owner of a green thumb that he used everywhere he lived and was also an “authority” on tomatoes. He loved life and made the most of each experience throughout his life.   Even though John spent his career overseas, his love for his native NC stayed within his heart. He always saw the glass as half full, and even when he became legally blind in later years, he never once complained, working within the community to promote self-sufficiency. John loved technology and was quite adept at manipulating assistive technologies for the blind and navigating the bus system in Chapel Hill.   Peggy and John returned to the USA in 1994 and retired in Morehead City, NC. He continued his vibrant life in retirement and earned his US Coast Guard Captain’s license, a NC Real Estate Broker License, Tax Preparer Certification, and even owned a garden store in Smyrna, NC. He worked as a boat captain for the NC Wildlife Resources Commission and drove the ferry back and forth to Hammock Beach State Park. He loved that job and loved being outdoors.   John is survived by his daughter, Mary Glenn Benton and son-in-law Glenn Benton of Chapel Hill, NC; grandchildren, Dr. Mary Hunter Benton, surgical resident at Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville, and John D. Benton, who lives in Barcelona, Spain as he pursues his MBA; two brothers, Dr. Allen Joseph Barwick (and wife, Jan) of Raleigh, NC, Dr. Jim Barwick of Washington NC; and nieces and nephews. John was predeceased by his wife of 58 years, Peggy, their son, Sam Barwick, and brother, Gene Barwick.   Private services will be held on April 2, 2022 at 11 a.m. at Azalea Estates, 700 N Estes Dr, in Chapel Hill, NC.