A native of the Charlotte area, Barry Secrest is the owner of two successful local businesses:  Carolina Industrial Agency and Peeler Insurance Agency.  He has more than 20 years of experience in the insurance industry.

Barry began his insurance career after serving as an Operations Specialist in the U.S. Navy aboard a Destroyer, the U.S.S. THORN.

He then attended college in Charlotte, NC. where he studied Electronics Engineering.

Barry's passionate interest in politics began to take shape in 1982 while in the USN.   The United States was coming out of a deep recession, and Barry had seen first hand how horribly the Military had suffered under Carter--along with the economy.

Then, he says, "Ronald Reagan came along and the USN was quickly brought back up to ultra-modern power.   The spirit of the country and the military drastically improved.  I was amazed that a single individual could have such a profound impact."