Bim Barry

Bryce Alderton

Trips to China and Thailand in the summer of 2001 got Bim Barry

thinking, “What would it be like to live in another part of the

world?”

Nearly three years later, the former Newport Harbor High boys

cross country and track and field coach can answer that question.

Barry, who guided Newport to its only state title in boys cross

country in 1992 and spent 12 years coaching at the school -- his last

coming in 2002 -- will conclude his second year as athletic and

activities director at Collegio Franklin Delano Roosevelt, a K-12

school in Lima, Peru’s capital, this spring.

“This has been and continues to be a growing experience,” said

Barry, 40, who lives in a condominium in a high-rise building about

10 minutes from the school.

Barry teaches three physical education classes to a student

population that is 60% Peruvian and 40% other nationalities. All

classes are taught in English, but a majority of students speak in

Spanish -- the country’s official language -- in casual conversation.

“I took German in high school, but living in Southern California,

I was exposed to [Spanish] to some degree,” Barry said. “Just being

in a different school, not to mention a different country, learning

how the school works and how to live in the city ... everything was

brand new the first year. But this year, things are much easier.”

Barry thought about coaching the track team, but said his energies

and time are better spent “making sure everything is running

smoothly” in the department.

One of the main differences between the two countries lies in the

role sports play and how much time players and coaches devote to

their chosen program.

“Sports play a much smaller role in life here,” Barry said.

“Practices are no longer than two hours and most sports meet only

twice and, sometimes, three times a week. There is not a daily

commitment, where at Newport, most sports have at least a

Monday-through-Friday if not a Monday-through-Saturday type of

commitment. Also, most of our contests take place before 6 p.m., so

there are not a lot of spectators.

“Football, or soccer, is very popular, but we might offer more

things than even at Newport. Our big sports are soccer, basketball

and volleyball and we have rugby, softball, baseball, roller hockey,

wall climbing, swimming and track and field. We have approximately

375 students at the high school and many are doing at least one

sport.”

The school does not offer cross country.

Barry’s Newport cross country teams won at least a share of five

straight Sea View League titles while his track and field teams

garnered at least a share of three straight league crowns upon his

departure from the school.

Barry graduated from Newport in 1981 and took his first coaching

and teaching job at the school.

When in town last week he stopped by to watch track practice

Monday.

“I realized how much I missed the kids,” Barry said. “I also miss

the coaching a lot because that was personally and professionally

rewarding. I was able to teach life skills within the arena of

athletics to kids. I do miss Newport Harbor, but [Peru] is beautiful.

I still have a home [in Costa Mesa] so who knows. I don’t know when I

will be back here permanently.”

Barry is glad he expanded his boundaries after those trips to

Thailand and China in 2001.

“I thought to myself, ‘What is keeping me here?’ On my return

flight I was sitting next to a man who was going to Warsaw, Poland,

to teach at an international school,” Barry said. “He described what

the lifestyle is as an international school teacher.

“I wanted to live in a big city. With the exception of my time at

USC [where he majored in business], I had never lived in a big city

and had never traveled outside [the U.S.], with the exception of

Mexico, until the summer of 2001.

Of Peru’s 28.4 million inhabitants, 8.27 million live in Lima.

After some research and attending recruiting fairs, Barry

submitted resumes and letters of recommendation, initially focusing

on schools in Asia.

“I knew I could live there,” Barry said. “Then I started getting

some recruiting interest from schools in South America, like Peru and

Brazil. Schools contacted me through e-mail and I went to a

conference in Carmel. I had two good interviews. My two best

prospects were [Collegio FDR] and the American School of Paris.”

The superintendent at Collegio FDR checked Barry’s references and

called him shortly thereafter.

“I was very impressed with the thoroughness and the

professionalism that existed,” Barry said of the application process.

“It turned into trying to sell me on the school and on Peru as the

country to live in.

It worked.

“I didn’t want to grow old not having pushed myself and lived my

whole life within my comfort zone,” Barry said. “I can look back on

it and say I have been immersed in another culture that is in a much

different spot developmentally than we are in the states. It puts a

different perspective on what is truly important.”