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"It seemed
that I was wanted all over the eastern part of Missouri,"
says Rev. Barr. "There were warrants for me in St. Louis,
St. Ann, Bridgeton, Maryland Heights, Richmond Heights,
and several other municipalities." He'd committed crimes
in Chicago, Detroit, San Diego, and other cities as
well.
"I was
not a family man," he confesses. "I was a dope fiend,
a con man, a liar, and a thief. I used anyone that came
in contact with me. Every turn that I made was the wrong
turn, and every road that I took was the wrong road."
Rev. Barr
reveals a long litany of wrongs, misdeeds, crimes, and
reprehensible actions. A sampling of his troubled lifestyle
included:
* Gun-carrying
drug dealer
* Stole
from employers
* Passed
bad checks
* Alcoholic
and drug addict
* Started
a race riot
* Cheating
husband and wife-beater
* Kicked
out of the Marines
* Ripped
off family members
* Stole
from the church
* Scammed
people while in a cult
Everyone
was after Rev. Barr, including the drug dealers he'd
stolen from, the cops, and family members whom he'd
ripped off to support a drug habit that peaked in the
mid-1980's at up to $500 a day. His out-of-control life
saw his career struggle, his marriage fail, his freedom
taken, and his life jeopardized.
"By the
age of 20 I was shooting heroin, smoking weed, getting
drunk and stealing to support myself, turning away from
the church that would eventually offer me an opportunity
for redemption," says Rev. Barr.
Maybe
he was just following in his father's footsteps, a man
who also was an alcoholic-turned-preacher. Maybe he
was just a product of his times, growing up a young
Black urban man in the 1960's, where the country raged
out of control over civil rights, the Vietnam War, and
a cultural revolution. His neighborhood friends fared
no better - getting shot, overdosing, or ending up in
prison.
But Rev.
Barr managed to finally turn the tide. He got clean
and sober, stopped his life of crime, and invested his
time and heart into serving his church once again. It
was a long time coming, but he finally straightened
his life out. Since 1994 he's been preaching and making
a positive impact on the lives of others. In fact, just
a few years ago he rekindled a romance with a woman
he hadn't seen in 35 years and they wed on Valentine's
Day, again proving it's never too late for good things
to happen in one's life.
Rev. Barr
provides insight on lessons learned, including:
* You
don't have to let where you are dictate who you are.
* No one
is beyond redemption. It's never too late to turn your
life around.
* No matter
what you have done, or what you have become, God loves
you.
"Our children
need all of the help that they can get," says Rev. Barr.
"We need to not only recruit people from our churches,
but from the business community as well. We have to
let people know that our children are our future, and
a troubled child is not necessarily a bad child. He
is sometimes just misguided. Children, like everyone
else, want to be accepted. They want to feel like they
are part of something. We have to make them part of
something that is positive or they become part of a
gang."
Rev. Bar
now speaks at prisons, churches, and schools, helping
to change lives and make a difference. He began by saving
his own life, and now he helps others.
"As the
reader digests the humor and sadness, reverence and
awe that is skillfully and dynamically ensconced within
these pages one might tend to forget that this is not
a novel or a writing of fiction that is before us. It
is a real life story, with real situations and with
an authentic and practical message for people of every
walk of life. Your life will be profoundly impacted
by his. It has been both my privilege and my pleasure
to serve as his pastor, prayer partner and friend."
--Rev. Ronald L. Bobo, Sr., D. Min, West Side Missionary
Baptist Church/St. Louis, Missouri
"The
Hoodlum Preacher helped get me through some discouraging
times while being imprisoned. The book confirmed the
fact that I can accomplish anything, as long as I have
faith." -- Project Pat, Hip-Hop Artist
"Riveting
and inspiring, this book offers a brave model from which
all sinners, great and small and most of us in the middle,
can gain confidence in themselves as they deepen their
faith in God. -- Dr. Eugene C. Kennedy, Author
Publication Data: The Hoodlum Preacher by Rev.
Burton Barr, Jr.; Kobalt Books; April 25th; Trade Paperback;
$14.95; ISBN: 0-9769117-1-X; 200 Pages
CONTACT:
Cedric Mixon
cedric.mixon@kobaltbooks.com
www.kobaltbooks.com
314-503-5462
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