ECUA Honors Barry Tweedie For Devotion To Free Speech, Exchange Of Ideas

April 22, 2021

The Emerald Coast Utilities Authority Board and the ECUA Citizens’ Advisory Committee (CAC) honored the late Barry Tweedie this week by dedicating the podium in the ECUA boardroom in his name.

Tweedie passed away on January 4, 2021, at the age of 68. He is a former member of the CAC and was actively involved with ECUA. He faithfully attended meetings and provided his insights into the management of water, wastewater, and sanitation systems over the course of many years.

“We dedicate this podium to Barry Tweedie, to honor his devotion to free speech and enthusiasm for the honest exchange of ideas in shaping policy,” a plaque placed on the podium states.

“This would mean so much to him if he was here,” his wife Paula Tweedie said. “Y’all meant so much to him; you enriched his life so much. To have something dedicated to him, not only just as a token, but something that is lifelong, that will remain here. That would mean so much to him.”

“Barry was one of the outstanding citizens,” former ECUA board member Larry Walker said. Tweedie ran unsuccessfully against Walker multiple times for the District 5 ECUA seat.

“America has precious few of those types of citizens. At ECUA over the past 25 or so years, Barry was really the only one,” Walker said. “He was the only citizen that faithfully came to our board meetings and our committee meetings. He was just as informed as any member of the CAC ever was. He was a wonderful citizen. ECUA is a lessor organization because of his loss. I appreciated him very much always, and I do to this day. Let’s all try remember that we all need to be good citizens in the Barry Tweedie mold.”

Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.

Comments

One Response to “ECUA Honors Barry Tweedie For Devotion To Free Speech, Exchange Of Ideas”

  1. JTV on April 22nd, 2021 4:07 am

    Nice gesture

    Thank you for your service Barry Tweedie

Written by William Reynolds · Filed Under News