James L. Barrett, WA6USN SK September 19, 2021

James L. Barrett, WA6USN SK



James Lyall Barrett
May 2, 1933 – September 19, 2021


Resident of Livermore
CDR James Lyall Barrett was born May 2, 1933 in San Pedro, California. Following graduation in 1952 from Narbonne High School in Lomita, California he was called to active duty as a naval reservist. He deployed that summer to Korea on the USS Badoeng Strait (CVE-116) as a Radarman Seaman. After completion of his obligated service in 1954 he chose to remain in the Navy and pursue a career, the same as his father had done during WW-I and WW-II.

In 1957 he met and married Edna (Eddy) Leone Christensen of Long Beach and they were married for nearly 40 years until her passing in 1997.

Lyall's naval career found him assigned to many ships and stations during his 32 years in the service. After Korea he served on the USS Weeden (DE-797), USS Henry W. Tucker (DDR-875), USS Berkeley (DDG-15), USS Horne (DLG-30) and USS Saint Paul (CA-73). In his first shore assignment in 1958 he was an electronics instructor at the Radarman School at Treasure Island, San Francisco. It was during this tour he was promoted to Chief Radarman.
His next tour was with the Commander, Cruiser-Destroyer Force, Pacific Fleet, Destroyer Development Group where he was promoted to Senior Chief Radarman and shortly after commissioned as an officer with the rank of Ensign. As an officer he deployed to Vietnam three times from 1965 to 1970. Shore assignments that followed include Officer in Charge of Naval Telecommunications Centers at Naval Air Station, Barbers Point, Hawaii; Naval Station Long Beach, California and Naval Air Station, Moffett Field, California. He retired in 1982 with 32 years of Naval service.

In 1983 he went to work with GTE Sprint Communications as a project manager in the switch network division until 1989. In 1990 he became manager of PRN Medical Supply in Santa Clara, California, later merging with Circadian, Inc. and continued in this field until he fully retired in 1995.

In other ventures he was an amateur radio enthusiast (WA6USN), a certified financial planner and holder of a commercial pilot's license.

In July 2000 he married a long-time friend from high school, Elaine Strickland Baxley and they settled in Pleasanton, California. Lyall is survived by children from his first marriage, Patty Genoa, Jim Barrett and Kathy Skelton; grandchildren Amber Genoa, Jazmyne Barrett, Gabi Skelton, James Skelton and Presley Barrett.
Visitation will be held on Friday, October 1, from 4-8pm at Graham-Hitch Mortuary in Pleasanton, Ca. A funeral service will be held at John Knox Presbyterian Church in Dublin on Saturday, October 2, at 9am with interment following at Los Gatos Memorial Park with full military honors.
View the online memorial for James Lyall Barrett

Published by East Bay Times on Sep. 26, 2021.

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/eastbaytimes/name/james-barrett-obituary?pid=200211051