Frank Barefield Jr
John Frank Barefield Jr (born September 7, 1946) is a financial analyst, founder of Abbey Residential, and chair of the board for Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama.
Barefield completed a bachelor's degree in finance at the University of Alabama and then spent four years serving in the U.S. Air Force. After completing his service, he enrolled in evening classes at UAB to complete a master's in business administration, and to qualify as a Chartered Financial Analyst.
As a weightlifter, Barefield won a silver medal at the 1974 IPF Men's World Powerlifting Championships in York, Pennsylvania.
Barefield worked as an analyst for Arthur Young & Company. In 1984 he and Marnix Heersink founded a predecessor to Abbey Residential, which now claims more than $2.5 billion in assets.
Barefield is a long-time board member for Crime Stoppers of Metro Alabama and has served as chair since 2012. Barefield and his wife provided funds to establish the Hoover Police Department's Frank & Pam Barefield Training Center next to Hoover Fire Station No. 4 on Municipal Drive in 2021.
In 2022 Barefield made a $10 million gift to UAB. As a result, the Department of Criminal Justice in the UAB College of Arts and Sciences and the Entrepreneurship Program at the UAB Collat School of Business where renamed in his honor, and the "J. Frank Barefield Jr Endowed Chair in Criminal Justice" and the "J. Frank Barefield Jr Endowed Professorship in Entrepreneurship" were established.
References
- Anderson, Jon (April 10, 2019) "Hoover police break ground on $4.2 million training center" Hoover Sun
- Dunkins, Kalyn (September 19, 2022) "Crime Stoppers chairman gifts UAB $10 million, largest single alumnus donation in school’s history." The Birmingham News