They broke the mold when Barry Sparks was born. While all of us can boast some semblance of uniqueness, Barry's character so permeates every fiber of his being, once you get to know this man, you know you will never meet another human being quite like him. His crew described it well in the graffiti they wrote on the mill room wall in the bakery he ran for over twenty year..."Barry rules."
In 1986, Barry, his wife Kate, and his parents Jay and Mary Sparks opened the downtown Denver Great Harvest. It was to be the first of three Denver area stores they would open. The third store in Arvada was solely owned and run by Barry and Kate and most represented Barry's convictions. This last January, Barry sold Great Harvest Arvada, the last Sparks store. It felt like the end an era in Great Harvest's history. Like many of the original Great Harvest owners, Barry became an icon to many following in his footsteps. He epitomized the freedom Franchise owner, running the business with the passion of his convictions. "No shirt, no shoes, no problem" is a mantra that well represents his attitude towards others - accepting and humble.
Matt Salis, who bought the downtown Denver store from Barry, told me the more he gets to know him, the more he realizes the sheer genius of the man. Barry's advice is always given with such humility, it's easy to miss its profound nature. Along with sincerity, the advice is always wrapped in humor. Matt described Barry's teaching him how to clean a bun press. Barry told him, "This is a ‘one song' job. If someone is taking longer than that to clean it, they're not doing it efficiently." He then proceeded to scrape it down quickly and oil it abundantly with olive oil. When he finished, he looked at Matt, then at his hands that were still covered with Olive Oil, and proceeded to rub the excess oil on his face and his bald head. He told Matt, "See, that's efficient. Now the bun press is lubed and I'm lubed." Matt says he is amazed how the best way to do things often comes back to what Barry had figured out all along.
Through his tour with Great Harvest, Barry did opening trainings 
for the franchise as well as location hunting. And in the true spirit of generosity, he was always ready to talk and to share his insights and humor. He was a forerunner in marketing before the days of a marketing department. He could be spotted in the neighborhood with his little red wagon full of bread, ready to introduce the product to unsuspecting future Great Harvest junkies. He even had the courage to stand out on Colorado Boulevard and hand out sweets and bread to people frenetically driving by on their way to work.
As I've gotten to know Barry, I've realized the complexity of this man and his skills that he never talks about - like his woodworking craftsmanship, and the fact that he was an expert technical climber, an expert tele skier, not to mention a music connoisseur. One of my favorite Barry stories came from a regional gathering of owners in southern Colorado. We were commencing on an 8-mile hike. Barry was wearing sandals and I asked if he was going to hike in those. He looked at me and said, "no", took the sandals off, put them in his pack and proceeded to hike the entire distance in his bare feet. There is no doubt, "Barry rules."
His passion for learning and desire to make the world a better 
place is exemplified by his most recent pursuit. When asked what he was going to do next he replied, "Bring the big oil companies to their knees." What does this mean? He's pursuing a career in alternative energy. The field is lucky to have his passion and his genius. We love you, Barry. Please keep in touch!
