Vilma Barrett Gunter: The ultimate mom
If ever there was a ‘Mom of the Year’ award, Vilma Barrett Gunter would be among the top contenders, if left up to her three sons — Alex, 20; Andre, 16; and Sean, 15.
Her husband of 18 years, Delroy, would also agree, as he refers to her as the “ultimate wife and mother”.
Passionate, kind, caring, patient, understanding and forgiving are some of the words the men in her life use to describe the woman whom they all acknowledge as the chief manager of the household.
A career banker with over two decades experience, Barrett Gunter has managed to juggle the many hats she wears daily — branch manager at Sagicor Bank, Black River; wife and homemaker; proud mother of three boys; an active member of Black River Seventh-day Adventist Church; and volunteer.
Recently Barrett Gunter won the Runner-Up Branch and Branch Manager of the Year awards, Western Region, at Sagicor Bank Annual Awards ceremony. She was also the recipient of many annual awards previously.
Among all of that, she found time to pursue further studies and completed the Executive MBA at The University of the West Indies, Western Campus.
In addition to excelling in her career, Barrett Gunter is particularly passionate about her church’s Care Committee — the outreach arm that manages a feeding programme for the homeless in Black River on Sundays.
She also volunteers for most of Sagicor Foundation’s projects and can usually be found in the thick of things at the Sagicor Sigma Corporate Run, JTA/Sagicor National Athletic Championships, or on Labour Day.
“Giving back is very important to me and it is something I instil in my sons as I believe it is important to be caring and kind; we have been tremendously blessed and I want to teach them the value in helping others,” Barrett Gunter said.
Reflecting on motherhood, she opened up about her first pregnancy resulting in a miscarriage. “It was devastating, but you have to press on… I was determined to be a mom and in less than a year after the miscarriage I had my first son,” she said. “I wanted two children, a boy and a girl, but my three boys are incredible. I would not trade them for anything and I have no regrets; they are my world.”
Her face lit up as she shared some of their accomplishments, among them excellent keyboard-playing skills as well as their knack for mathematics. Alex, the eldest, is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in teaching, majoring in mathematics at Church Teachers’ College.
After their successful completion of the Grade Six Achievement Test, all the boys got their first-choice placement for Munro College, their dad’s alma mater. Andre is in fifth form, currently, sitting his CSEC subjects, while Sean is in fourth form.
“I am very proud of them and their successes; they are good boys and I always encourage and talk to them. My husband and I usually reward them for exceptional performance, but it has to balance, so we also withdraw privileges when they do not perform well,” she said.
“I have a special bond with my boys and I learn a lot from them too, even as their mother. We have fun together and I get more attention than Daddy,” she said with a smile.
Barrett Gunter recounted that when the boys were much younger she enjoyed playing football and cricket with them. “Beach days were also a major bonding activity; even now we find time to do things as a family and we try to take summer family vacations as often as we can,” she said.
The protective mom said she understands the many stereotypes society can have of boys, so she ensures she stays close to them to keep abreast of what they are doing and observe their behavioural patterns.
“Just like at work, I also coach my sons and offer them advice, but I also listen to them, hear them out, and find out about how their day went and how they can improve on something next time around,” she said.
Barrett Gunter is excited and upbeat about life as she looks forward to the future, seeing her young men reach their maximum potential, advancing in her career, giving back more, and growing and developing overall to be a better person.