Former City Council member Gary Bell dies in California
By Beccy Tanner
The Wichita Eagle
Published Wednesday, August 7, 2013, at 9:59 a.m.
One of the first African-Americans and youngest member at that time to ever sit on Wichita’s City Council has died.
Native Wichitan Gary Bell was just 25 years old when he first ran for office in Wichita in 1985. He served on the council for two years.
In 1989, he moved to Richmond, Calif., where he worked as a banker, becoming involved in political and community activities. He was president and CEO of Cooperative Federal Credit Union in Berkeley.
Mr. Bell died Thursday in a Redwood City, Calif., Hospital from a bacterial sinus infection. He was 54 years old.
Funeral services were scheduled for 11 am. Wednesday at the Hilltop Community Church in Richmond.
In 1985, Mr. Bell became the second African-American in Wichita’s history to serve on the Wichita council. The first was A. Price Woodard. At the time Mr. Bell served, he was youngest person in the city’s history to sit in that position.
During the 1980s, Mr. Bell was working on a degree in general studies at Wichita State University. He was active in organizing the Black Arts Festival and in gaining signatures for a petition supporting district elections for council members.
On Tuesday, former Mayor Bob Knight, who served with Mr. Bell on the council, said he lost a good friend.
“He was a terrific athlete who became interested in politics and in true form was very competitive,” Knight said. “I liked him a lot, so did my family. He was a quality guy.”
In recent years, Mr. Bell served on the Credit Union Advisory Council to the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. He was a former licensed real estate broker and served on the Richmond City Council from 2000 to 2005, according to Richmond Council member Tom Butt’s e-mail forum website. He was elected again on November 2012 to serve on the council but was unable to assume the post after being hospitalized from the bacterial infection.
During his youth, Mr. Bell excelled in football and wrestling, earning scholarships at WSU where he received his bachelor’s degree in 1986. He earned his master’s degree in financial management and organizational leadership from John F. Kennedy University in Orinda, Calif.
Mr. Bell is survived by his wife, Shelley Ross-Bell, sons Gary Jr. and Germaine and eight brothers and sisters: Edward Bell Jr., Anthony Bell, Charles Bell, his twin sister, Gale Bray, Carol Davis, Carolyn Young, Jacqueline Bell-Murry and Donald Bell.
Reach Beccy Tanner at 316-268-6336 or btanner@wichitaeagle.com. Follow her on Twitter: @beccytanner.

Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/2013/08/07/2929365/former-city-council-member-gary.html#storylink=cpy

Leaders, residents turn out to remember former Richmond public official Gary Bell
By Robert Rogers
Contra Costa Times
Posted:   08/07/2013 03:54:10 PM PDT
Updated:   08/08/2013 06:58:28 AM PDT

Gary Bell (Robert Rogers/Staff)
RICHMOND -- Gary Bell's friends and family eulogized him at Hilltop Community Church on Wednesday as an ambitious and ebullient leader whose zeal for public service was exceeded only by his devotion to his wife and two sons.
"Gary had a lot of things going on all the time," said Curtis Watson, a retired Alameda County undersheriff. "He was a good husband, good father and was, is and always will be a good man."
Bell, 54, was a longtime local leader in politics and banking who was elected for the second time to the City Council in November but fell ill days before the election with a bacterial sinus infection. Bell slipped into a coma in November and died Aug. 1.
More than 200 people, including droves of top political and banking leaders from the region, turned out to pay their respects.
Speakers gave lengthy remarks, most sprinkled with lively anecdotes depicting the irrepressible Bell -- smile brilliant and eyes twinkling -- as driven to ascend new heights after he landed in the Bay Area from Wichita, Kan.
"It was 1989 in Berkeley" at a social function for area movers and shakers, said Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson. "And this guy comes up and says, 'I'm Gary Bell ... where are we sitting?'"
Carson laughed, adding that Bell accepted an offhand offer to meet later for racquetball. It was soon clear that Bell had no experience playing the game.
"He didn't even have a racket, but Gary never stopped talking," Carson said.
Other speakers Wednesday praised Bell for his business acumen, professional demeanor, steady work ethic and ability to build legislative support for public policy improvements.
In 1985, Bell became the second African-American and youngest ever candidate to win a seat on the Wichita City Council. He wasted no time in working to change a system that heightened barriers to minorities and poor people winning local office, said Steve Cranford, an attorney and longtime friend. At-large elections favored the wealthy and powerful, he said.
"Gary was the impetus for district elections," Cranford said. "It won and still affects Wichita today."
Richmond Councilman Nat Bates and Richard Poe, a local developer, also praised Bell. Bates called Bell a "gentleman of the highest caliber," and Poe said Richmond "got things done" during Bell's first stint on the council.
Bell came to Richmond in 1989 to work as a branch manager at Bank of the West. He was president and CEO of Cooperative Federal Credit Union in Berkeley from 2000 to 2002 and again from 2008 until his illness.
Bell was elected to the City Council in 1999, serving one term. In 2006, he narrowly lost a bid to become mayor of Richmond.
After weeks of grueling campaigning, Bell fell ill days before the Nov. 6 election. On Election Day, he checked himself out of the hospital to address supporters in a victory party at a Marina Bay restaurant.
Attendees said Bell looked visibly weakened, and he soon returned to the hospital. He underwent two neurosurgeries later in November but never regained consciousness.
It was his wife, Shelley Ross-Bell, whom he wed in 2000, who helped Bell channel more of his energy into public service, speakers said.
"If everyone is quiet, we can hear Gary now in heaven," Carson said. "Telling people what to do, how to go about it, how to make it better."
A memorial fund has been set up in Bell's name at Mechanics Bank.
Contact Robert Rogers at 510-262-2726 or rrogers@bayareanewsgroup.com. Follow him at Twitter.com/roberthrogers.

Tom Butt
Richmond City Councilman
117 Park Place
Richmond, CA  94801
Phone:  510.236.7435
Mobile: 510-220-1577
Fax:  510.232.5325
E-mail:  tom.butt@intres.com
Tom Butt Political Website: http://www.tombutt.com/

Board of Directors, Past Chair, Local Government Commission
League of California Cities Environmental Quality Policy Committee
Alternate, Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO)
Alternate, San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC)
West Contra Costa Transportation Advisory Committee (WCCTAC) City of Richmond Representative
Contra Costa Transportation Authority Commissioner
Marin Energy Authority Board Richmond Representative
East Bay Regional Park District Liaison Committee Richmond Representative
City Council Liaison to Design Review Board and Historic Preservation Commission
City Council Ad-hoc Committee for Chevron Energy Renewal Project