West Roxbury Iron Man with Heart of Gold Swims for Life

This article was written by Michael J. Rielly.

With shoulders like hams framed by his black Orca swim vest, Ralph Barry of West Roxbury does not look like your typical endurance athlete. At 6-feet and a trim 250 pounds, you'd expect to see him in the weight room or on a judo mat.   
 
While you may find him there at times, this Friday, July 15, you'll find him digging into a 20-mile open-water swim around the Boston Harbor Islands for a cause that is truly bigger than he is. 
 
For the 14th year in a row, Barry will be participating in the Swim Across America Making Waves to Fight Cancer relay race. More than 60 amateur and Olympic swimmers will join in this year, and funds raised will benefit the David B. Perini, Jr., Quality of Life Clinic at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Opened in 1992, the Perini Clinic is one of the first full-service clinics dedicated to serving cancer survivors. 
 
To earn the money his supporters have pledged to continue cancer research and treatment at the Perini Clinic, Barry is required to swim seven one-mile legs of the relay-style race.   
 
But for the 50-year-old Boston ironworker who has a heart of gold when it comes to helping kids with cancer, his goal is to swim through as much of the 20 miles without relay, just as he has done for the past several years.  For Barry, the swim is a celebration of life. 
 
"Ralph is one of those people who inspires everyone around him," says Kathleen Tetreault, event director for the swim.  "He helps the swimmers in the water because he just keeps going." 
 
But what has inspired Barry to swim so hard for so long? It's the memories he makes while visiting kids with cancer at the Jimmy Fund Clinic the day before the swim. 
 
"I think of what these kids are going through to fight cancer. And I feel supercharged --  I feel that power within me," said Barry. 

"All the kids sign my swim cap -- the same one I will use in the race. It's like I am taking them with me on a journey. Any time I want to stop, I think of what these kids are going through to fight cancer. I feel supercharged -- I feel that power within me. And then I just keep kicking," says Barry.   
 
After the race, the cap will be retired and kept on display at the Dana-Farber Cancer institute, as is now the tradition. 

There's still time to sponsor Ralph! 
 
Call 1-888-SWIM-USA or visit www.swimacrossamerica.org

Along with all his supporters, Ralph's fellow ironworkers from Iron Workers Local 7 will be with him heart and soul in his marathon swim. After all, their connection to local kids with cancer runs deep. 

While Ralph and his union brothers were working on the Jimmy Fund Clinic, kids with cancer would write their name on a piece of paper and hold it up to the window. Then, an ironworker would spray paint that name on a beam so the kid could see it. Every name would get a loud cheer from the kids. They know their names will be there forever. 

"When you see the kids with cancer in different stages of treatment and recovery, it's gut-wrenching. It's really sad to see a child in pain, and if I can do something to help? I'm going all out, " says Barry. 

Barry has also been touched personally by cancer. His piercing blue eyes mist over a bit when he talks about losing three family members to the disease. "I also swim to honor my sister Dianne Barry, and my aunt Marge Tobin and uncle Jim Barry, all of whom lost their battles with cancer," says Barry. 

"Jelly fish the size of frying pans, thunder, lightning, cold water, curious seals, shark threats -- none of it can slow me down. I keep my mind on the ultimate goal. The best part of a Swim Across America event is when you see where the donations go. The money really does make miracles happen, and it's a fantastic thing," Barry said.