Roger Bailey Goss

Kathy Chiodi-Goss and Roger Goss 1988-2020 Near the 4th of July, 1988 while reading on 46th Street beach in OC, I saw an incredibly tan and trim man in a Speedo walking toward me on the beach. He had a beautiful blond on each arm and my first thought was, “Well this is what mid-life crisis looks like.” and went back to reading. As I found out later that weekend, one of those gorgeous blonds was his daughter, Holly. Shame on me for jumping to conclusions. She is still gorgeous, as is her sister, Heather. Later that evening, when I finished grooving to the music (this was still the 80s after all) on the dance floor of the Ocean Club, also on the 48th Street beach, he asked me to dance. A little over a year later, on September 9th 1989, at sunset, on the deck of a chartered 3-hour sight-seeing ship in the inner harbor of Baltimore, we became man and wife. Boats tooted their horns, guitars played, and the sun and then stars shined upon us. After settling in a home in Towson, MD where Roger indulged in his passion for landscaping and gardening, we spent many years together discovering many different venues and countries cruising, touring and dancing together until we exchanged limbo for lumbar. Roger and I continued to enjoy the beach together, we just expanded our horizons to the beaches of the Aruba, Bermuda, the Caribbean, Costa Rica, the Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Mexico, Puerto Rico, St. Maarten and St. Thomas where we spent our honeymoon. I loved surprising him by arranging excursions and adventures, for his birthdays and our anniversaries including the Moulin Rouge in Paris for his 65th birthday, riding donkeys down the cliffs of Santorini in Greece and enjoying The Lion King in a London theater. Over the years, we made many friends, some of whom we have kept to this day. Along the way, we shared our love of animals and cherished our standard poodles, including our current love, Cosmo. Sadly, my Roger was taken suddenly on Saturday, August 29th after battling the complications of COPD for many years. ROGER BAILEY GOSS September, 1938 – August, 2020 Roger Bailey Goss of Towson, Maryland, son of noted Baltimore radio and TV personality, Bailey Goss, and his wife, Anna Elizabeth Seleski, originally of Reading, PA, died of heart and pulmonary complications at GBMC on Saturday, August 29, 2020. Roger was raised in Mt. Washington where he was a member of the 1st class of the new St. Paul’s School in Brooklandville, Maryland. In his freshman year, he was chosen to join 1st Team All MSA Lacrosse and awarded an honorable mention in football. He later transferred to Baltimore Polytechnic Institute. After competing in team sports for 3 years at Poly, he was again named to All MSA Lacrosse and 1st Team Poly Ice Hockey. He graduated in 1956. Being a true all-around athlete and sports aficionado, he also joined the YMCA Meadowbrook Swim and Diving Team and competed in regional tennis and badminton tournaments in the Mid-Atlantic region. Following high school, Roger attended the University of Maryland, College Park, where he played football and lacrosse, was named to the Lacrosse All American Team for 3 years running and joined Kappa Alpha fraternity. He graduated with a B.A. degree in 1960. After graduating from college, he continued to engage in his passion for lacrosse and captained the North-South Lacrosse team. He was later inducted into the Mt. Washington Lacrosse Hall of Fame. Also, in 1960, Roger met his first wife, Sherry Whittenburg, a championship figure skater, at an ice rink in Mt. Washington. They married in July of 1960, made a home together in Harford County, MD and raised two lovely daughters, Heather and Holly. Both shared their parents’ proclivity for excellence in sports. Roger spent many an early morning escorting Heather to her swim team practices and competitions. Holly excelled in lacrosse, much like her father, and attended his alma mater, the University of Maryland, on a lacrosse scholarship. Tragically, Roger lost Sherry, his devoted wife and mother of his children, when a small plane collided with helicopter in 1986. Roger joined the National Brewing Company in 1963 promoting their brand in Baltimore as a sales, public relations and corporate convention manager for National Beer, “Natty Boh,” one of Baltimore’s most popular brews to this day. In 1969, he served the City of Baltimore as a member of the committee that conceptualized and organized the first Baltimore City Fair. He not only launched the event but acted as the emcee for “On Stage Downtown” concerts. His next project in promoting Baltimore and tourism business in Maryland was as Emcee of the Preakness Parade while Director of the Preakness Festival, arranging for popular entertainment artists and hosting infield parties at Pimlico Race Track. He continued to grow in his promotion and marketing career when in 1972, he was chosen as a TV spokesperson for “The Land of Pleasant Living” advertising campaign. He became the voice and name of the popular ad campaign and is often still remembered for it today In 1973, Roger leveraged his considerable expertise in sales, marketing and promotions into a position with WBAL Radio as Director of Marketing. In 1982 during his tenure with WBAL, he secured a contract to broadcast University of Maryland basketball and football games. In 1990, he partnered the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra with WBAL succeeding in providing highly popular and well attended family concerts at Oregon Ridge State Park. In the following years, he continued to work in sales and marketing for first for WAMD radio of Harford County, then for The Larry Beck Trophy and Jewelry company and finally, the Clipper City Brewing Company. Roger was respected and well known for his acumen in envisioning, promoting and orchestrating events, as well as generating funds and support for charitable organizations. He served on the boards of Santa Claus Anonymous, the Fuel Fund of Maryland, the Maryland Kidney Foundation, and many Inner Harbor attractions. His dedication to the promotion of Baltimore culminated in a Baltimore’s Best Award presented to him and James Rouse by Mayor William Donald Shaefer. Roger is survived by his loving wife of 31 years, Kathleen Mary Chiodi-Goss of Towson, Maryland; his two daughters, Heather Dee Harris (Jody) of Baltimore, Maryland and Holly Lee Foti (Dean) of Syracuse, New York; his sister Rochelle Creamer of Timonium, Maryland; and his six grandchildren: Daniel, Sherry, and Jordan Levine and Riley, Sophia and Lainey Foti. Due to the current pandemic, a private Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please make memorial donations to the S.P.C.A., the Maryland Food Bank, or St. Jude’s Children’s Society.