Barry Riesch
Barry Riesch served in the U.S. Army from 1968 to 1970, including one year in Viet Nam. Trained as an infantry mortorman, he supported the troops in the field. Barry survived physically and mentally, but has his own set of emotional scars as a result of that war.
Barry paricipated in his first anti war demonstration to shut down business in Washington, D.C. in May of 1970. He joined VFP in 1990, just prior to Persian Gulf War I, and he has been actively involved ever since.
In 1992 Barry traveled to Viet Nam with the Vietnam Veterans Restoration Project. It was an effort to achieve personal healing, to help build bridges, and to help heal the wounds of war with our Vietnamese brothers and sisters.
He traveleld to Chiapas with Brian Willson in 1998 on a veterans fact finding mission to investigate how our tax dollars were being used in the so-called "Drug War."
Barry was part of the formation and implementation of the Veterans for Peace Iraq Water Project, which sent teams of veterans into Iraq to repair water treatment plants damaged by US bombing in 1991 and the following economic sanctions. He traveled with the first team to Iraq in 2000. He helped raise approximately $200,00.00, sent three teams, and repaired six plants to aid approximately 100,000 Iraqis.
Barry served two years as Vice President and two years as President of Minnesota Veterans for Peace, Chapter 27. He served one year as President of the National Veterans for Peace and is currently carrying out a three year term on the National Board.
Barry has worked as a Carpenter for 20 years and is currently employed with the City of Minnetonka as Plans Examiner/Building Inspector.
He is available for speaking engagements any time, any place.