Scott A. Green

It is with great shock and sadness that his family announces the passing of Scott A. Green, age 69, of Rehoboth Beach, DE.

Scott was born in Philadelphia, PA, but grew up in north Wilmington, DE. And what a wonderful growing up it was. Summers at the Green Acres pool, playing outside with friends until each would hear their father's unique whistle and run home, playing catch with his dad, riding his bike all the way to Chester, PA on the paved, but not yet opened, new road 'I-95' – boy, did he get in trouble for that!

Scott played sports from an early age. He swam competitively, played football and tennis in junior high, threw the shot put in high school, and played on the JCC basketball team. As a youth Scott participated in the local 'punt, pass and kick' competition, and even advanced far enough to compete in Philadelphia.

One of Scott's hallmarks growing up was to be always working, preferably 2-3 jobs at once. He worked at the Jewish Community Center men's locker room, he honed his love of Soul and R & B music working at Bailey's record store in downtown Wilmington, he sold a new-fangled thing called 'cable TV' door to door before most people knew what it was. Scott even sold sports betting cards – legally. He worked with his father at the Sleep Mart store, and loved that time with dad, sometimes eating food together that mom would not have allowed. During drives around Wilmington, Barb remembers Scott pointing out not only each of the houses he had delivered a mattress to, but also remembering the size of mattress, and how many flights of stairs he had to haul it up!

Scott went to high school at Mount Pleasant in Wilmington, and he had great stories of his time there. He loved being a DJ at the school's radio station, WMPH, where his eclectic music tastes were revealed, and his gift of gab came in handy. Does anyone else remember when Linda Ronstadt gave a concert there, and got undressed backstage in front of a group? Scott did! Scott treasured all of his friends, and he kept a very special place in his heart for the high school friend group; with his help they stayed in touch regularly, and he would want very much for that to continue.

Scott was a lifelong, diehard Philadelphia sports fan. He started going to Eagles games with his father and his father's friends in 1961 at Franklin Field, and he had wonderful memories of those days. In Scott's early driving days, his father famously threw him the car keys after an Eagles game saying, 'show us what you've got!'. In later years Barb loved (not) the 'we have to be the first people back to Delaware' driving strategy every time they left a game. Like every real Philly sports fan, Scott felt free to express his displeasure frequently. But, oh when his birds won, there was NOTHING better!!

Scott loved to travel; some of his favorite places were Martha's Vineyard, MA, Pebble Beach and Carmel, CA., Hilton Head Island, SC, and the coast of Maine. For several years Scott and Barbara were able to spend the winter on Hilton Head, and he loved to take golden retriever Barklee on the beach, interacting happily with other dog owners there. Speaking of Barklee, Scott took her everywhere here at home, and she became a bit famous; her photo is still behind the desk at Scott's beloved Rehoboth Beach Library. A special shout out to the folks at the RB Library, for your caring and support. He loved sitting on a boardwalk bench with her, looking at the ocean, and having people admire Barklee.

Scott loved golf when he was still able to play, loved bike riding, loved reading his entire life and was an amazing speed reader, with a diverse reading list that would blow your mind. He loved music of almost every genre; music was a very strong connection for Barb and Scott together. Many concerts were attended; Luther Vandross, Earth Wind and Fire, Tower of Power, James Taylor, and many more. He played educational and humorous podcasts constantly; 'Freakonomics', 'Pivot', 'Smartless'; the list is huge.

Scott's sense of humor was the primary feature of his personality. That is, after all, why Barbara married him. He used humor in every situation; prickly business dealings, tough negotiations, with every medical person he encountered, in all facets of life; this is how he put all types of people at ease. And of course, he also used it for the sheer joy of it, as on one occasion when he made his mother-in-law laugh so hard she had to run out of a restaurant because she had wet her pants. He LOVED that!

Scott was always involved in his community, helping organizations he felt were doing important work. He was an early member of our dear friend Norman Oliver's 'Stormin Norman's Basketball League'; helping kids play basketball and also improve their academics was right up his alley. He chaired the Leukemia Society of Delaware annual golf tournament. He was on the Board of the Special Olympics of Delaware, and he and Barb got involved in helping that organization with the Polar Bear Plunge in many ways over the years.

Scott received his undergraduate degree in International Relations at the University of Delaware in just 3 years, to save expenses. While at UD one of his jobs was at the Morris Library. Barb arrived one day to work there, and his attention turned away from his usual charming of the female librarians. Barb got called into the office and was told to 'stop distracting him' or she would be let go! At UD he was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity, which resembled 'Animal House' in many ways. He went from UD to law school at American University in Washington, DC, where he graduated with his Juris Doctor degree. An internship at Delaware Senator Bill Roth's office during this time allowed him to see how the national government worked, and helped build on his interest in politics.

Scott passed the dreaded Delaware Bar exam in 1979, and he started doing mostly land use and real estate development work in New Castle County, DE, at firms Morris, James, Hitchens, & Williams, Cooch & Taylor, and Saul Ewing. A fun period of practicing law came when he, along with good friends Bill Ward and Dan Krapf, opened a law firm in Greenville, DE. He loved that he could bring his beloved golden retriever Butkus to the office with him.

While practicing law, he also kept his finger in Delaware politics in many ways. He was County Attorney for New Castle County in the Rita Justice administration. He was attorney for the Republican caucus of the State Legislature in Dover, where he used his unique negotiating skills and relationships to draft and guide legislation to approval. He served on the Judicial Nominating Committee of the Delaware Bar Association for years, providing important input and recommendations to multiple governors on judicial appointments in Delaware. He was part of the 'kitchen cabinet' to several governors, and he was a valued advisor to countless political campaigns for both Democratic and Republican candidates. He had a unique skill for seeing a problem or a

need in a global sense, and he could come up with creative win – win solutions that others could never dream of, doing it all behind the scenes and never wanting credit. This skill was his 'special sauce'.

His talents were essential again during his involvement in bringing minor league baseball to Delaware. Working with business leaders, developers, and politicians to get the Blue Rocks Stadium built and get the team to come here, all of this was hard work, and a great source of joy and pride for him. Take a look at the plaque on the front of the building next time you go to the stadium. Scott served more than a dozen years on the Delaware Stadium Corporation with wonderful friend Steve Taylor, his co-conspirator on the project from the beginning. And, of course, an early activity had to be a drive around the country to view other minor league stadiums, right?? This project, combining his negotiation skills, his Delaware knowledge, his legal knowledge, his contacts and relationships, his creative problem solving, and yes, SPORTS, was a dream come true.

During the early 1990's Scott started exciting work for MBNA America Bank, acquiring real estate and developing corporate properties in many locations domestically, and around the world. Scott had a way of creating connections and establishing strong relationships that enabled him to accomplish difficult feats when others could not; that skill worked outside of Delaware, too.

Following retirement from MBNA, Scott embarked upon another exciting period with his role as Executive Director of the Delaware River and Bay Authority. That role included responsibility for the critical Delaware Memorial Bridge, the Cape May - Lewes Ferry, and five airports located in New Jersey and Delaware. He loved that job, even though it was very difficult. It required juggling competing interests from numerous parties in New Jersey and Delaware, and that juggling hit right on his strengths. During that time, he became interested in and knowledgeable of drone technology, which allowed him to become an advisor and advocate of the technology to many stakeholders in the public and private sectors.

Scott valued education very highly, and he was an 11-year member of the University of Delaware Board of Trustees, his beloved undergraduate alma mater. He took particular delight in his 2015 appointment as Chairman of the Board of Delaware Technical Community College. He felt strongly this was the place where he could encourage and support the learning of real skills, that are so desperately needed in today's world. There Scott led an historic transformation of our state's community college system, by adding new academic programs, implementing holistic supports for students, gaining national recognition for student success, and implementing campus capital improvement plans in each county. He was especially proud to bring life-changing educational programs to so many Delawareans who might otherwise not have access to economic opportunities through higher education. And bringing food pantries to the Del Tech campuses for students who dealt with food insecurity………brilliant!

Scott took each of his diverse roles throughout his lifetime very seriously – don't let that endless humor fool you otherwise. He dearly loved, and he intimately understood his home state of Delaware, and he worked all his life to try to make it better. In 2017, Governor Jack Markell presented him with the Order Of The First State, the highest civilian honor awarded by the Governor, for his service to the state of Delaware and its citizens.

Scott is survived by his loving wife of 46 years, Barbara H. Green, his mother, Rochelle Green-Tanger, and his sister, Jamie H. Green. He was preceded in death by his treasured father, Paul B. Green. Scott is also lovingly remembered by his many nieces, nephews, great-nieces and nephews, godchildren, honorary nieces and nephews (you know who you are!). One of his greatest joys was proudly following the lives and accomplishments of all of these younger loved ones, and yes, also humorously tormenting them whenever possible. It brought him deep sorrow that he was not able to meet the beautiful Giovanna Lamberti, and the soon to be Jovie Richardson in person.

For all those who were fortunate enough to have known him, Scott was truly one of a kind, and we who loved him are shocked that he is no longer with us. For Barbara, the amazing roller coaster ride of a lifetime is over. On their wedding day in 1979, Barb's mom Janet pulled them aside and said, 'I feel like I have just opened the most wonderful storybook ever!'. And oh, how right she was.

Scott's wife would like to profusely thank Dr. Misleh and his team, the nurses at the two MOHC infusion sites who somehow made it work when there were no veins, Dr Swisher-McClure and his amazing nurse Patrice at Delmarva Radiation Services, the staff at the Christiana Hospital ER, Dr. Szeto at Christiana who literally saved his life twice using interventional radiography, the staff at Beebe Hospital where Scott was in his last days, and especially the heaven sent Noor Al-Rashid, who will never be forgotten, for helping us through the worst 24 hours ever. All of these folks were exceptional at their jobs, but they also offered caring and understanding on our truly horrible medical journey, where the hits just would not stop coming. A special mention for Scott's PCP, Dr. Deborah Zarek, who skillfully shepherded him through his medical challenges for decades, and who helped us during many critical points in the past year. Bless you all, and thank you all.

Scott's preference was to be cremated, and to not be buried. His ashes will be spread at some of his favorite places in the future. There will be no formal services. In lieu of seeing you at services, Barbara Green his wife, and Jamie Green his sister, would love to see you informally, and to share hugs and stories about a really great man. Please email us at bgreen227@aol.com, for details on upcoming gatherings.

Scott would love memorial contributions to Delaware Technical Community College. Please reference the Scott and Barbara Green Scholarship Endowment. Contributions may be sent to Delaware Tech, P.O. Box 897, Dover, DE 19903 or online at https://go.dtcc.edu/ScottGreen.

Scott adored his father who died way too young. Contributions to the Siegel Jewish Community Center, and specifically to the Paul B. Green Memorial fund at the JCC, would make him very happy. Siegel JCC, 101 Garden of Eden Road, Wilmington, DE 19803.

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