Leann Barr, retired director of Human Resources at AMERICAN Cast Iron Pipe Company, recently received the 2014 Eskew Legacy Award from the Blue Ridge Conference on Leadership Board of Directors. The inaugural award was presented to Barr at this year’s conference, Oct. 8-10, in Black Mountain, North Carolina. The award is given to someone whose long-term service and leadership have advanced the vision, values and mission of the Blue Ridge Conference on Leadership.

Barr served on the Blue Ridge board of directors from 1995 to 2006, serving as chairman for two years. She led the non-profit during its transition from a privately owned organization in Atlanta, Georgia, to its current location and administration at Auburn University.

A graduate of Auburn University with a bachelor’s degree in management, Barr joined AMERICAN in 1973. She held various positions with the company before being named Human Resources director in 1992. She retired from AMERICAN earlier this year with almost 40 years of service.

Barr’s civic and professional affiliations are vast. She served on the board of directors for Junior Achievement of Greater Birmingham, Birmingham Urban League, Inc., and Girl Scouts of North-Central Alabama, Inc., as well as on the Momentum Advisory Board. In addition, Barr is a member of the national and Birmingham Society for Human Resource Management and the International Women’s Forum Georgia.

AMERICAN is an iron and steel manufacturer based in Birmingham, Alabama, that employs about 2,600 people at its headquarters and subsidiary locations. The company was founded on the Golden Rule – treating employees, customers and neighbors the way you want to be treated.