Vincentian serving in the British Army receives Queen’s New Year Honour

A Vincentian serving in the British Army has been appointed to the Military Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire as a Member (MBE).
Sergeant Guy Fitzroy Oronde Lowe-Barrow, of the Royal Logistics Corps, is one of 64 personnel from the British Army who were recognized in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List 2020, published in the London Gazette on December 27.
“Many are being rewarded for going above and beyond; whilst tireless commitment, selflessness and compassion feature in citations. Leadership, welfare and humanitarian work have pushed soldiers and officers to excel on deployments overseas and at home in the UK,” the British Army said on its website.
Lowe-Barrow, 43, received his award for leadership in championing inclusion in the Army.
A 19-year veteran of the armed forces, Lowe-Barrow said the reality of being honoured still has not sunk in. “It is a bit surreal, this MBE thing,” Lowe-Barrow told SEARCHLIGHT on Sunday. “I never thought I would have been one of those persons with honorific post-nominals….”
He said the award is perhaps an acknowledgement and recognition of not just his work, but the work of people in his networks.
“Yeah, we’ve been recognized!” he declared.
The soldier has served in leadership positions in both the Lesbian Gay Bi-Sexual and Transgender (LGBT)+ Network and Black Asian and Minority (BAME) Network of the British Army, being one of three persons who helped to set up BAME Network.
He said as a black, gay, immigrant man in the Army, he brings a unique perspective and context to discussions.
“The work that I do within the LGBT Network comes from a need I saw. That need was for a space where LGBT personnel could meet and be themselves within the work sphere and … discuss issues that affect them for the common good.
“As it turned out, the space morphed into one where we were able to become an interlocutor between the chain of command and army policy, but also form a genuine community of gay, lesbian and bisexual and transgender personnel and [also] non binary people operating in the sphere.”
He said everything is not yet perfect, but they have been able to achieve a situation where there is respect “…for others, how people present; mutual assistance.”
Lowe-Barrow is also an equality, diversity, inclusion advisor and said his work is about helping to create a space where people can be themselves and feel supported and empowered in doing so.
“When I, or anyone else comes to work, we don’t just put on our uniforms and bring our military selves to work. We bring all of us. So, it is about creating a space where the whole person is respected and the whole person can come to work and be more effective, because we are not worried about what we say or how we say it or what we do. So, as a black, gay Vincentian, when I turn up to work, I turn up as me and I add my cultural context to what I do, and my understanding of things in the Army and hopefully that has brought about some positive change.”
In a tweet, the Chair of the Army BAME (Black Asian Minority) Network said “I’m so chuffed to see @guyfroy (Lowe-Barrow) on this NYHL. He was instrumental setting up the @ArmyBAME Ntwk and has been a talisman for @ArmyLGBT+ Forum for many years – his personal drive’s a GR8 example of the selflessness that sits at the core of @BritishArmy Values.”
Lowe-Barrow has qualified as a Chef in the Royal Logistic Corps (RLC) and has completed several Operational Tours of Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as multiple other overseas deployments.
When SEARCHLIGHT spoke with him on Sunday, he had just completed a tour as a catering instructor at the Food Services Training Wing of the RLC.
He said while at the RLC Training Wing, he was also the lead person responsible for training staff and students on equality and diversity issues and had responsibility for safeguarding students at risk.
On January 6, he begins a new assignment, this time in the Royal Artillery, supervising a catering unit of the field army, something he said he is excited about.
Originally, from Rose Place, Kingstown, Lowe-Barrow said he has fond memories of his childhood, growing up surrounded by his extended family. He had his early education at the Kingstown Anglican School, after which he attended the St Vincent Grammar School.
He was one of the first Vincentians to be recruited into the Army, directly from St Vincent and the Grenadines.
This country’s latest recipient of an MBE is the son of Guy Lowe and Karen Barrow, both of Kingstown.