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Remembering Public Servant Ted Venetoulis

Ted Venetoulis served four years as Baltimore County Executive in the ‘70s. That was just a small part of his decades in public service, policy and business. He died on Oct. 6 at age 87. Credit: Baltimore County
Ted Venetoulis served four years as Baltimore County Executive in the ‘70s. That was just a small part of his decades in public service, policy and business. He died on Oct. 6 at age 87. Credit: Baltimore County

Ted Venetoulis, the son of Greek immigrants, was a city kid who made good as a reform politician in the suburbs. But his four years in elective office, as Baltimore County Executive in the ‘70s, were just part of decades in public service, policy and business. Writer Michael Olesker, a friend for fifty years, marveled at Venetoulis’s unrelenting optimism. Johnny Olszewski, the current Baltimore County executive, said his legacy stretches across the region and the state.

 “He inspired a whole generation of public servants, he was there for the new generation and my generation, he was involved in things beyond government and for our communities and for issues out there and so he just was a special person.”

Links: Michael Olesker's article in Jmore, Josh Kurtz's obituary in Maryland Matters, On the Record's 2016 interview.

Sheilah Kast is the host of On The Record, Monday-Friday, 9:30-10:00 am.
Melissa Gerr is a Senior Producer for On the Record. She started in public media at Twin Cities Public Television in St. Paul, Minn., where she is from, and then worked as a field producer for Oregon Public Broadcasting in Portland. She made the jump to audio-lover in Baltimore as a digital media editor at Mid-Atlantic Media and Laureate Education, Inc. and as a field producer for "Out of the Blocks." Her beat is typically the off-beat with an emphasis on science, culture and things that make you say, 'Wait, what?'