In Memoriam

Barry Smith

Born: April 15, 1937, in Bellingham, Washington
Departed: March 24, 2008

 

Barry was born on April 15, 1937, in Bellingham, Washington, and moved with his family to Walnut Creek, California, when he was in high school. He became a teacher and worked at DeAnza College in Cupertino, California, for most of his career. He taught small business administration and accounting from 1965 to 1999.

During that time, he married and had two daughters, and later became the grandfather of four. He was devoted to all his family, and loved to show them what fun life can be. He encouraged his daughters to follow the path that was right for each of them, even if it was alternative and out of the mainstream. And that they did!

Barry became fascinated with the possibility of reaching for a greater understanding of the world through dowsing. He joined the San Jose Chapter of the American Society of Dowsers, where his energy and enthusiasm soon saw him become head of the group. He later became a trustee of the national organization and then served as president, and was a long-term member of the West Coast Conference committee.

Having started out with the traditional dowsing tools, Barry went on to develop hand-dowsing applications.  He developed “Hand Analysis” for working on the etheric level of the body using reflexology, emotional-block clearing, meridians, chakras and other subtle energies. His activities have included dimensional logic patterning, physical body clairvoyance and color-projecting. He is a former director of “SmartLife,” a longevity- and life-enhancement research forum in Palo Alto. A chapter on his background can be found in the book “Successful American Dowsers.”

Barry loved dowsing. He was committed to bringing dowsing and mind phenomena to the public beyond the usual boundaries of metaphysical communities. His mind was on a continuous quest for answers about the Universe, and to discover new ways of presenting consciousness to the world. Dowsing was his medium.

He had a wonderful ability to merge the serious side of metaphysics with humor, and his organizational skills brought new visions to the West Coast Conference. He loved to pioneer new ideas to reach a broader audience for dowsing. His love of children made him a natural as a teacher with the WCC Youth Program, bringing dowsing and metaphysics to young people.

Thinking of Barry will always remind us of his zest for integrating dowsing and fun. He made the quest for a deeper understanding of the Universe entertaining and joyful.