Crowd fills Laurel fire hall for Venables tribute

Staff February 6, 2015 Cool People 2

Delaware’s highest award for service to cycling.

Published in the Cape Gazette
February 4, 2015

A crowd of 400 people said phooey to snowstorm warnings Monday night, Jan. 26, to fill the Laurel fire hall and pay tribute to Senator Bob Venables.

Sussex County Council President Mike Vincent summed up the atmosphere in the banquet hall: “In this whole room there is a feeling here – it is a feeling of love for you, Bob.”

For more than a quarter century, from 1988 through 2014, Venables was one of the state’s most admired and powerful legislators. His position as chairman of the state’s bond bill committee for many years kept him at the center of Delaware’s governance. In that position he was able to ensure the completion of many projects for the state and Sussex.

Gov. Jack Markell presented Sussex County’s senior legislator with the Order of the First State, the highest honor the governor can bestow. “Bob has been an enormously positive historical figure in this state for the last three decades,” said Markell. “He combined the power of perseverance, the power of dedication and the power of love to get so much done. And it was never about Bob Venables. He always stood up for our state – all of Delaware was his district.”

Dale Ervin of Fraunhofer Center for Biotechnology in Newark demonstrated the statewide breadth of Venables’ work through the years. She recalled that following an economic development trip to Germany, Venables championed creation of a research facility in Delaware. “Bob’s support led to our decision to locate here,” she said. “Fraunhofer is the largest independent research center in the world, using biology, not chemistry, to create proteins from plants for safe and quick production of vaccines like those used to combat malaria and Ebola. Bob supported seed money for us so we could set up in 2001 with two employees. Now we have 80, and that seed money has returned more than $130 million to the Delaware economy. He understood the potential.”

Speaker after speaker stood to thank Venables for all he has done for the children of Delaware through his support of Boys & Girls Clubs and for the construction of new schools. Representatives of Trap Pond State Park thanked him for his tireless efforts to see the park’s facilities improve through the years, and James Wilson of Bike Delaware called Venables the greatest champion of cycling Delaware has ever had. Specifically, he cited Venables’ support for the Trails and Pathways Initiative that has brought Delaware recognition as the fourth most bicycle-friendly state in the U.S.

Robert Venables

Venables would have continued his work as senator but, ironically, the man considered the staunchest conservative in Delaware despite his Democrat affiliation was swept from office in November when Bryant Richardson tallied more votes in a strong showing from conservative Republican voters.

Venables was the last to speak at his tribute: “Since you all fired me, I’ll tell you what. I’m getting to like it. At first I missed my phone ringing, and going, going all the time. But you know? I’m 82, and I’m a reading addict. That’s what’s made it so I could talk about whatever I wanted to talk about. There’s more education there than I ever got in schooling. So now, on these cold winter days, I get the fire going, it’s nice and warm, and I get to spend as much time as I want reading and being with my wife and family.”

Venables said he was humbled by the tribute. “I can take a lot of pain, but not much praise. When I was doing all these things you’re talking about, I was getting paid. I was just doing my job.”

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Delaware General Assembly