For the love of Destin: Mayor passes the gavel after two terms (with VIDEO)

Craig Barker grew up out on the docks.

He developed his passion for fishing there. He fell in love with Destin there. He got his first paycheck from the East Pass Marina there. And he got his first glimpse of the girl that would become his wife there.

“I first saw Callie when she was working as a dock girl at Marina Point,” Barker said. “I found myself buying diesel fuel in 10-gallon allotments so I could stop by everyday.”

Barker worked at the marina every summer until he graduated from the University of Florida with an engineering degree in 1991. Then he became a full-time Destin resident and got a job working for a defense contractor. He spent his nights taking business classes at the University of West Florida.

After graduating with his master’s degree in business administration, Barker went from working 80 hours a week between his job and school to working 40 hours a week.

“I had 40 hours each week I wanted to fill doing something positive for my community,” Barker said. “I love the city of Destin. I love its history and its heritage. So I ran for city council, and I had not a clue.”

At 26 years old, Destin’s youngest city councilman found that all of the answers weren’t as clear as he thought they would be. He said his first two years in office were unsuccessful because he was “trying to please everybody on every issue and in the process wasn’t providing any leadership.”

But with the help of a mentor, he learned to lead. And Destin noticed. Residents elected him to serve four more years as a city councilman. And it was during his last few years on the council that he bumped into Callie again while handing out campaign flyers.

“On our first date, she caught a tarpon within 20 minutes,” Barker said. “And I literally knew within 24 hours of our first lunch together that she would be the one to change my life forever.”

After five years of dating, the pair married one month after Barker was sworn in as Destin’s youngest mayor. He said his plan had been to catch a big tarpon, gaff it and pull the wedding ring out of its mouth. A storm ruined that plan, and he carried the ring around for six more months before spontaneously popping the question at a family dinner.

“It was just a miraculous event,” he said.

The couple’s married years have been busy ones. Barker served eight years as mayor, putting in an average of 39 hours a week. He also started a fishing reel design company in 2001. But he said when he and his wife get home, they leave shoptalk at the door.

“We don’t talk politics,” Barker said. “Every moment we have together is very special, and we share the best parts of our day.”

But occasionally the best parts of his day do take place at the shop, like when he hands out Good Citizenship awards to Destin students. He said it can be very challenging and complex to be Destin’s mayor, but all the pressure falls away when he sees the kids.

“Their smiles and energy take away whatever might be burdening me,” Barker said. “I don’t think I can really explain it in words, but the rest of the week it’s a natural high.”

Looking back on his term, Barker said the two things he is most proud of are transforming the city from a top-down organization to a bottom-up team and assuring that the city’s actions are consistent with what the citizens want.

He accomplished the first by getting city staff involved and invested in making Destin an even better place to live. He initiated customer satisfaction surveys to accomplish the second.

“Most city, state and federal government doesn’t listen,” Barker said. “I wanted to make absolutely certain that the city of Destin listened.”

He said being Destin’s mayor has made him a better person, but he’s sometimes surprised at where his life has taken him. He didn’t set out to be a politician. But his desire for a challenge and to contribute to the place he loves took over.

And now that drive is taking him to Tallahassee. Barker officially passed the gavel to Mayor-Elect Sam Seevers during a March 1 council meeting. He is running for State Representative District 4.

“I’m not in this to get myself into a position of power,” Barker said. “I’m simply in it because I know I can do what’s right for the citizens of District 4. It’s definitely in my heart.”

While he is heading onto unfamiliar ground, Barker’s roots will always be in Destin. And he admits he’s spent the last few weeks tearing up every time he does something as Destin’s mayor for the last time. The tears welled in his eyes once again when he spoke about his experience as mayor.

“I’m tremendously honored that I’ve had this opportunity,” a choked up Barker said. “It was challenging, and there were times when I didn’t sleep for days on end because something was weighing heavy on my heart. But it’s irreplaceable.”

To read The Log's send-off to the mayor, click here.