Page 10 - Port of Baltimore Magazine November/December 2016

[8] The Port of Baltimore ■ November/December 2016
The Happenings In and Around The Port — Send us your news for a possible item in the Soundings section in the Port of Baltimore Magazine. Email todd.karpovich@todaymediacustom.com.
The Port community came
out in full force for a pair of memorials to honor Helen Delich Bentley, including (bottom, from left): the Rev. John FitzGerald, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan and Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski.
IN MEMORIAM
Friends, Family and Colleagues
Say Goodbye to Helen Delich Bentley
BY TODD KARPOVICH
Elected officials, friends and leaders in the local maritime industry shared many laughs, and shed a few tears, as they formally said goodbye to Helen Delich Bentley at the Cruise Maryland Terminal at the Port of Baltimore on Nov. 4.
Bentley was remembered for her feisty personality, but more importantly, for her unwavering support for the Port. Several hundred people attended the private ceremony, and more than a hundred more attended a public viewing later in the day at Fort McHenry.
“She was simply Helen. She didn’t need a last name,” Sen. Barbara A.
Mikulski said. “When you said, ‘I got a call from Helen,’ everybody knew what that was. ... She was the Helen that launched a thousand ships.”
James J. White, Executive Director
of the Maryland Port Administration, remembered getting a phone call from Bentley at 3 a.m. because she had forgotten someone’s name. He also recalled a long road trip where he used her as a sounding board for a presentation. White assumed Bentley’s silence meant she approved ... until he glanced over to the passenger seat and realized she had fallen asleep.
“She was the Port even before it was named after her,” White said. “We were the only port in the United States that had a resource like Helen Bentley.”
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s voice cracked with emotion when he remembered calling Bentley when the two were undergoing treatment for cancer. He visited her several times over the final few weeks of her life.
“There truly was never anyone like Helen Bentley. She was one of a kind,” Hogan said. “Her Port continues to break records. It continues to be one of the best ports in the entire world.”
Also paying tributes were David Blumberg, a former intern for Bentley who wound up becoming a longtime friend. Gloria Cataneo Tosi, another former colleague and friend, also shared her memories of Bentley.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY BILL MCALLEN