Montgomery County Rec mourns the loss of former director, Gregory Bayor. In a career spanning 39 years, Greg provided thousands upon thousands of children and adults with quality programs and special events as Director of Recreation & Parks for the Cities of Rockville, MD; Elgin, IL; Baltimore, MD and Montgomery County, MD, culminating with his retirement in late 2017 from the City of Tampa after restructuring the Department, beginning with the redesign of the department logo.
He successfully guided the construction of the Julian B. Lane Riverfront Park. Some other projects included the renovation of the Roy Jenkins Pool; the creation of Water Works Park & the innovative Perry Harvey Park. He brought the Cal Ripken,Sr Foundation to Tampa to create two parks for At Risk Youth – Baseball at Sulphur Springs & a Multi-Purpose Field at the Glazer Family Field at NFL Y.E.T. Center.
He was extremely proud of the award winning dance & gymnastics teams. Having played Lacrosse at the University of Baltimore he was thrilled to introduce the sport into the program to enthusiastic participants, most of whom had never seen it played. The Stay to Play Program which he created to keep Rec Centers open until midnight during the summers, kept at-risk youth not only safe, but provided meals, often the only meal attendees would receive in a day. He felt it was one of his most important accomplishments.
Greg earned the rank of Eagle Scout at the age of 14. He attended Temple University in Philadelphia & the University of Baltimore where he played soccer & lacrosse. He was President of the Alumni Association & a Member of the Board of Governors. He was also a former Member of the Board at the acclaimed Lowry Park Zoo (now, Zoo Tampa) & at the Museum of Science & Industry.
Greg’s passion for all things golf is well documented, not only as a student of the game but his redesigns of three public courses and a stint as an assistant golf course superintendent after college. He was an avid skier & fisherman & an artist who dabbled in many media. In retirement he ventured into woodturning creating beautiful bowls & pens which he gifted to family & friends.
Greg was known for his creativity, his love of the Baltimore Ravens, his sense of humor & practical jokes, organizing special events, both personal & professional & as the Cool Uncle to his family & Peter Pan to his wife. Celebrations of Life to be held in Tampa & Maryland at later dates. His full obituary can be seen here.