Cheri Merritt Barry is an American politician and former
mayor of Meridian, Mississippi. She is the first woman to hold that position.
Biography
Cheri Merritt grew up in
Meridian
Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to
Science
* Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon
* ...
, where she was a graduate of
Lamar High School in 1973. She continued her education at the
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment.
...
, where she graduated in 1977.
Shortly after graduation, she married Rick Barry, who is a County Attorney. They have three children, Jennifer Barry Fowler, Jay Barry and Merritt Barry.
Cheri Barry has spent a good part of her professional career in public service. It began with the
Lafayette County welfare system, where her focus was on children and geriatric abuse victims. She later worked with the
Lauderdale County Welfare Department.
From 1998 to 2001, Barry taught in the
Meridian
Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to
Science
* Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon
* ...
Public Schools system. She then served as the Executive Director of the American Red Cross Key Chapter from 2001 until her election as mayor.
The American Red Cross Key Chapter serves
Clarke
Clarke is a surname which means "clerk". The surname is of English and Irish origin and comes from the Latin . Variants include Clerk and Clark. Clarke is also uncommonly chosen as a given name.
Irish surname origin
Clarke is a popular surname i ...
,
Kemper,
Lauderdale
Lauderdale is the valley of the Leader Water (a tributary of the Tweed) in the Scottish Borders. It contains the town of Lauder, as well as Earlston. The valley is traversed from end to end by the A68 trunk road, which runs from Darlington to E ...
,
Neshoba,
Newton
Newton most commonly refers to:
* Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist
* Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton
Newton may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Newton'' (film), a 2017 Indian film
* Newton ( ...
and
Scott
Scott may refer to:
Places Canada
* Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec
* Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380
* Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Saska ...
Counties in
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
.
Barry narrowly defeated
Democratic challenger Percy Bland to become the first female mayor of
Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian is the List of municipalities in Mississippi, seventh largest city in the U.S. state of Mississippi, with a population of 41,148 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census and an estimated population in 2018 of 36,347. It is the count ...
. She won by a margin of only 293 votes.
On Tuesday, July 7, 2009, shortly after her first City Council meeting, Barry vowed to make good on a campaign promise to have the community more involved in the governing process. "What I want to do is involve this community and give ownership back to the residents of Meridian," she said. "I want their input. I want their ideas."
The mayor receives a salary of $80,000 per year, making her the fifth highest paid city employee in
Meridian
Meridian or a meridian line (from Latin ''meridies'' via Old French ''meridiane'', meaning “midday”) may refer to
Science
* Meridian (astronomy), imaginary circle in a plane perpendicular to the planes of the celestial equator and horizon
* ...
.
On June 4, 2013, Barry lost her bid for re-election to Percy Bland by a margin of 4,514 votes for Barry to 5,479 votes for Bland. Bland took office on July 1, 2013.
Municipal Projects
Meridian Law Enforcement Center
On November 16, 2010, Mayor Barry and the Meridian City Council approved an order that authorized the execution of amendment to agreement for professional services between Watkins Development, LLC and the City of Meridian.
On June 7, 2011, Mayor Barry and other local officials held a ground-breaking for the Meridian Law Enforcement Center.
In June 2012, after a delay in construction, Mayor Barry announced the official approval to move forward with the Meridian Law Enforcement Center, and detailed the proposed financial structure for the city project.
On March 19, 2014, Watkins Development was charged with securities fraud for transferring more than $500,000 in public funds to the Meridian Law Enforcement Center project from the account of Retro Metro LLC, which was formed to renovate the Metrocenter Mall in Jackson, Mississippi.
On November 20, 2014, The Chancery Court of Hinds County, First Judicial District, ordered Watkins Development, LLC and David Watkins, Sr. to pay more than $650,000 in restitution, penalties, and interest for violations of the Mississippi Securities Act.
On June 28, 2016, the Mississippi Court of Appeals rendered a decision that reinstated the 2014 Secretary of State final order for the fraudulent transfer of funds to the Meridian Law Enforcement Center project.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barry, Cheri
Mayors of Meridian, Mississippi
Women mayors of places in Mississippi
Mississippi Republicans
University of Mississippi alumni
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
21st-century American women