Latest news with #NewsObituaries
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Donald J. Slowinski, former president of CCBC Essex, dies
Donald J. Slowinski, the former president of the Community College of Baltimore County – Essex, died of multiple organ failure Feb. 19 at Stella Maris Hospice. The former Towson resident was 89. Born in Newark, New Jersey, and raised in Irvington, he was the son of Julius Slowinski, a printing firm owner, and Nora Majewski Slowinski, who ran the family home. While a student at Irvington High School, the younger Mr. Slowinski met his future wife, Val Jean Sytko. He earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees from Rutgers University in 1957 and 1963. His doctoral dissertation, completed at George Washington University, focused on the role of students as change agents within higher education. 'Donald believed strongly in the power of education to transform lives,' said his granddaughter Elizabeth C. Lewis. He began teaching English at Highland Park High School in Highland, New Jersey, and soon became assistant admissions director at Rutgers. He moved to Maryland in 1963 as director of admissions at what is now Towson University. 'He was bigger than life. He was a faith-filled man,' said his daughter Donna Jean Pamfilis. 'He loved good food and a good laugh. He had a strong moral compass. He was an an early riser and a hard worker. He was a gifted public speaker and would write his talks in the pre-dawn hours.' He later moved to what was then called Essex Community College and became associate dean of instruction and dean of students. 'Donald was a man of the people. His door was always open,' said F. Scott Black, a friend and CCBC faculty member. 'He was polite and a friend to everyone.' In 1990, Mr. Slowinski was named the college's president, a post he held until 1996. He then received president emeritus status. News Obituaries | Charles Barry Truax, former advertising executive, dies News Obituaries | Rosetta Webster Graham, founder of the Family Bereavement Center, dies News Obituaries | Dennis Patrick O'Brien, former Baltimore Sun reporter, dies News Obituaries | Jane Blunt Clemmens, former pediatric nurse, dies News Obituaries | Phebe L. McPherson, first woman to be ordained a priest in the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, dies On March 24, 2010, in recognition of Mr. Slowinski's dedication to higher education in the state of Maryland, then-Gov. Martin O'Malley proclaimed that day as a day of tribute to him. Mr. Slowinski was a participant in the first class of the Leadership Maryland professional development program and went on to serve on its board. After moving to Towson's Campus Hills neighborhood in 1963, he became an active member of Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Parish and was a past parish council president and lector. He was also a member of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. Survivors include two sons, Donald J. Slowinski Jr., of Lawrenceville, Georgia, and James B. Slowinski, of Greenville, North Carolina; three daughters, Donna Jean Pamfilis of Wilmington, North Carolina, Mary E. Dorsey, of Midlothian, Virginia, and Patricia A. Curran, of Stevensville; 13 grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren. His wife, Val Jean Sytko Slowinski, a Community College of Baltimore County-Essex speech professor, died in 2014. A son, Christopher G. Slowinski, died in 2017. A funeral Mass was held Feb. 22 at Immaculate Conception Church. Have a news tip? Contact Jacques Kelly at and 410-332-6570.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Charles Barry Truax, former advertising executive, dies
Charles Barry Truax, a retired VanSant Dugdale advertising executive recalled for his ability to analyze information and for his outgoing personality, died of multiple organ failure Feb. 13 at UNC REX Hospital in Raleigh, North Carolina. The former Ruxton resident was 85. Born in Utica, New York, he was the son of Walter Truax, a businessman, and his wife, Virginia Truax, an antiques dealer who ran a Cortland, New York, restaurant. After the death of his father, he and his mother moved to Baltimore. They lived temporarily on the third floor of the Hampton Mansion where his mother was a curator. He was a graduate of Baltimore Polytechnic Institute and Loyola University Maryland, where he was a cheerleader and dressed as the school's greyhound mascot. Mr. Truax started his advertising career in 1962 at the VanSant Dugdale agency and retired in 2004 as senior vice president. He worked on the USF&G, Marriott, Westinghouse, Legg Mason and Lockheed Martin accounts, among others. While at the agency, he met his future wife, Carla Wimmer. They married in 1981. 'Barry had a booming personality, warm smile and great sense of humor,' she said. 'He talked to everyone he met and was truly interested in their lives.' A colleague, Sheldon Taule said, 'Barry was pleasant and outgoing and was something of a jester within the office. He was truly much smarter than people appreciated. He was a problem solver and a very capable guy.' Raymond Sachs, another colleague, said, 'He was a combination of a person who could think in a perfectly orderly way — he could write computer code — but he also didn't like rules. He was an exceptional mathematician and could take media information and make it usable. You could not have a better friend and he was a welcome guest at every party.' Mr. Truax was a past board president at the old Valley Academy and president of the Ruxton/Riderwood/Lake Falls Association. He was an avid Baltimore Colts and Orioles fan, and also enjoyed sailing, skiing and flying. 'Barry was a big guy — 6-foot 4-inches — who endlessly peppered me with questions since the time we met as freshmen at Loyola,' said a longtime friend, John P. Healy. 'As a pilot, he was steady as a rock and was the kind of guy you wanted to be within a foxhole. He was also an excellent sailor and never panicked, even in heavy seas and 20-foot waves.' News Obituaries | Rosetta Webster Graham, founder of the Family Bereavement Center, dies News Obituaries | Dennis Patrick O'Brien, former Baltimore Sun reporter, dies News Obituaries | Jane Blunt Clemmens, former pediatric nurse, dies News Obituaries | Phebe L. McPherson, first woman to be ordained a priest in the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, dies News Obituaries | Frank S. Turner, first African American from Howard County to serve in the Maryland House of Delegates, dies Harry Gormley, a neighbor and friend, said, 'Barry was vivacious. He could tell a good story and being in advertising, he had plenty to tell. He was the kind of friend who, without asking, would cut your grass for you if you were laid up.' He had been a Eucharistic minister at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen. A celebration of life and Mass will be held at 11 a.m. March 13 at St. Mary Magdalene Roman Catholic Church in Apex, North Carolina. Survivors include his wife of 44 years, Carla Wimmer Truax, a WYPR vice president for corporate development, two daughters, Susan Barry Harrington of Holly Springs, North Carolina, and Sarah Elizabeth Truax of Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina; a son, John Barry Truax of Palm Beach, Florida; and grandchildren. Another daughter, Kathryn Barry Truax, died in 2012. Have a news tip? Contact Jacques Kelly at and 410-332-6570.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
James R. Grieves, Baltimore's Center Stage architect, dies
James R. Grieves, an architect who won awards for Baltimore's Center Stage and the Brandywine River Museum, died of heart failure Feb. 5 at the Blakehurst Retirement Community in Towson. He was 92. His father, Edward Grieves, a stockbroker, drowned while fishing when Mr. Grieves was a child. His widowed mother, Frances Rutledge Kefauver Grieves, later married Charles Rowland Posey, and the family settled on University Parkway. Mr. Grieves, a Baltimore native, was a graduate of St. Paul's School, the University of Virginia, and Princeton University. At his St. Paul's graduation, he received the Kinsolving Fellowship Award, the highest honor for a senior. He also played on the first-string All-Maryland lacrosse team. While a student at the University of Virginia Architectural School, he was captain of the lacrosse team and was named an All-American. While at Princeton, he earned a Master's degree in architecture and coached lacrosse. His wife, Anne Braff Grieves, said he was most proud of his creation and expansion of the Brandywine River Museum in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. He took an old grist mill and made it into a setting for the works of Andrew Wyeth, his father, N.C. Wyeth, and other members of the Wyeth family, among other artists associated with the Brandywine School of Painting. Mr. Grieves got the commission in 1968 when he was 35. The museum opened in 1971, and an addition followed in 1984 and again in 2004. 'We've grown with this museum. We've learned from this museum,' Mr. Grieves said in a Baltimore Sun interview. Mr. Grieves also won honors for converting the old Loyola High School building, adjacent to St. Ignatius Roman Catholic Church, into what is now Baltimore Center Stage. News Obituaries | John Latchford Beck, 'unofficial mayor of Ellicott City Main Street,' dies News Obituaries | Beverly Byron, former U.S. congresswoman representing Western Maryland, dies News Obituaries | Alma Elizabeth Meagher, family matriarch, dies News Obituaries | Beverly Byron, former U.S. congresswoman representing Western Maryland, dies News Obituaries | Joseph Palmisano, retired family physician, dies The converted school opened as a theater in 1975 after Center Stage suffered a multi-alarm fire at its previous playhouse on East North Avenue in what had been an Oriole Cafeteria. The design was awarded a national American Institute of Architects Award in 1978. 'Jim was at the forefront of historic preservation,' said an associate, David Wright. 'He was humble about submitting Center Stage for consideration. But he was delighted when the recognition came.' He also worked on the Baltimore School for the Arts, the Walters Art Museum and the restoration of the Wilmington, Delaware opera house which contained a cast iron facade made in Baltimore. His firm designed the Marine Mammal Pavilion, a large and colorful expansion to the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Other projects included Richardson Hall at Princeton and Tashiding, a Baltimore County residence. Mr. Grieves was a past president of the Lacrosse Foundation, enjoyed golf and played at courses from Carmel, California to Nantucket Island. In addition to his wife of 57 years, survivors include three children from his first marriage, to Ann Watts: James R. Grieves Jr., of Baltimore, Richard B. Grieves, of Easton, and Katherine Grieves Perkins, of Warner, New Hampshire; a stepson, Hilary Gans; a sister, Ann Posey Cherry; nine grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Have a news tip? Contact Jacques Kelly at and 410-332-6570.
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
John Latchford Beck, unofficial mayor of Ellicott City Main Street, dies
John Latchford Beck, an Ellicott City Main Street presence, retired archivist and Army linguist during the Vietnam War, died of cancer Jan. 30 at Adventist HealthCare White Oak Medical Center. He was 82. Born in Baltimore and raised on Collins Avenue in Irvington, he was an Edmondson High School graduate. He enlisted in the Army, trained as an intelligence analyst at Fort Holabird and then as a Vietnamese linguist at Fort Bliss in Texas. 'He worked in intelligence under an assumed name and in civilian clothes,' said a friend, Jim Halcomb. 'He had a talent for languages and was told he was accomplished as a native speaker. He earned a Bronze Star Award for his work, first getting information about the Ho Chi Minh Trail and later in the interrogation of prisoners of war.' He studied at the University of Maryland College Park and returned to Vietnam briefly — but a job as a guide failed to pan out. He then backpacked across Australia, Southeast Asia, Afghanistan and Europe. He settled in Ellicott City in the early 70s and briefly owned a head shop. He found a walk-up apartment on the third floor of a 19th-century structure. He collected cameras and displayed photos of Mick Jagger and Jim Morrison. 'It was like a bohemian salon,' said friend, David Ditman. 'He was one of the kindest, most interesting people I have ever met. He was well-read, an artist and a photographer. We talked together, on and off, for 50 years.' 'He was a unique, genuine soul that touched many people's hearts,' said his nephew, Steve Beck, 'He was often called the unofficial mayor of Ellicott City Main Street.' Friends recalled that he prepared the same dinner – chicken, rice and vegetables, then shot a photo of the meal. He then arranged the photos by date. In a 2016 Catonsville Times article Mr. Beck said he'd 'witnessed the town change from a motley collection of grocery stores, a movie theater, hardware shops and hippie spots into a vibrant small town with restaurants and boutiques.' News Obituaries | Beverly Byron, former U.S. congresswoman representing Western Maryland, dies News Obituaries | Alma Elizabeth Meagher, family matriarch, dies News Obituaries | Beverly Byron, former U.S. congresswoman representing Western Maryland, dies News Obituaries | Joseph Palmisano, retired family physician, dies News Obituaries | Perry J. Bolton, Maryland steeplechase stable co-owner, dies 'People think we're just a tiny little tourist town. They think it's almost like a movie set,' he also said. 'There are people who live above these businesses. There are business owners who live on top of their businesses. This is a real community.' 'It's bohemian, in a way,' he said. 'It's out of the ordinary. It's off the beaten track. It's funky.' At times he tended bar at the Cacao Lane Restaurant He cultivated a full head of hair, beard and mustache and wore oversized eyeglasses. When not walking along Main Street in Ellicott City, he often appeared at festivals, including SoWeBo, HonFest, the Renaissance Festival and Artscape. He carried his camera and took numerous photographs. Mr. Beck was an assistant librarian of the special collections at the Kuhn Library at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. He did archival work in the library's photographic archive section. A life celebration will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Feb. 22 at Howard County Historical Society Museum, 8328 Court Ave., Ellicott City. Survivors include his brother, George W. Beck of Catonsville; and nieces and nephews.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Perry J. Bolton, Maryland steeplechase stable co-owner, dies
Perry J. Bolton, who co-owned and raced competitive horses in Maryland's steeplechase season and was one of the sport's best-known figures, died Jan. 28 after suffering a heart attack at his Jupiter, Florida, home. He was 94 and also lived in Brooklandville. Born in Newport, Rhode Island, he was the son of Alfred 'Jack' Bolton, a film executive and his wife, Ida Perry Black Bullock. He was a Gilman School and University of Virginia graduate. His great-uncle, George Brown Jr., saw the first Maryland Hunt Cup in 1894, raced many times and won the event in 1900 and 1916. Mr. Bolton was a descendant of Van-Lear Black, an owner and chairman of the old A.S. Abell Co., publishers of The Baltimore Sun until 1986. Mr. Bolton was The Sun's vice president of corporate development and later worked for McCorquodale, a specialty printing firm. He had also been the board chair of Excel Homes. Mr. Bolton's first winner as an owner came in September 1947 at Timonium Race Course. He hunted with the Green Spring Valley Hounds until he was 82. 'He was stalwart for timber racing and fox hunting,' said Ross Peddicord, retired executive director of the Maryland Horse Industry Board. 'He dressed impeccably and knew the game.' Mr. Bolton formed the Armata Stables partnership with his lifelong friend, Benjamin H. Griswold IV in 1993. They owned numerous leading steeplechase horses. The Armata Stables' horse Welter Weight won the 1999 Maryland Hunt Cup and finished second four times. His horse Vintage Vinnie won and set a time record. 'He was a happy individual,' Mr. Griswold. 'We shared a great interest in fox hunting and racing. We had more fun together. Perry was a wonderful partner. We never had a disagreement.' Mr. Bolton annually awarded a trophy named for George Brown to the leading Maryland timber race champion. News Obituaries | John 'Roger' Lee, retired Baltimore County tax supervisor, dies News Obituaries | E.F. Shaw Wilgis, pioneering hand surgeon and co-founder of Curtis National Hand Center, dies News Obituaries | Bettie W. Crow, artist and former florist, dies News Obituaries | Herbert S. Garten, attorney and father of pro-bono legal representation for the most vulnerable, dies News Obituaries | Sister Patricia Scanlan, who cared for the ill as a member of the Carmelite Sisters of Baltimore, dies He served on the boards of Gilman School, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Maryland Institute College of Art and the Maryland Chapter of the Nature Conservancy. He was a member and played at the Seminole Golf Club and hunted grouse and pheasant in Scotland. Survivors include his daughter, Aurelia B. Peterson, of Durango, Colorado; two sons, George Brown Bolton, of Jupiter, Florida, and Charles S.G. Bolton, of San Francisco; and nine grandchildren. His wife of 65 years, Aurelia Garland Bolton, a representative for Sotheby's auctions, died in 2024. A life celebration is planned for the spring. Have a news tip? Contact Jacques Kelly at and 410-332-6570.
