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Reg N Tampa

Road to retirement had surprising detour

TOWN 'N COUNTRY Before a banker could relax and w rite that book by the pool, he had one last big job to pour his passion into.

By SHERYL KAY
Published November 26, 2006

After 31 years in international banking, Bob Samuels decided to retire.

Well, not really.

"My intention was to come here to Tampa, sit by the pool and write a book, but it just didn't turn out that way," said Samuels, 68, of Town 'N Country.

His journey to nonretirement began in the early 1960s as he entered the banking profession. African-Americans were just breaking into finance careers, and Samuels was at a disadvantage in not having what he called "nature's passport."

Instead of growing up among wealthy, Ivy League-educated families, he had spent his childhood in a low-income section of Philadelphia, connected only to friends he had met at his local parochial school.

The mostly white bankers "looked at us and thought, 'What are you guys doing here and what do you want?' " Samuels said. "And we thought to ourselves, 'We want the same things you want, so move over.' "

Talent and perseverance paid off for Samuels big time. He steadily moved up the banking ladder and in 1972 became one of the first black vice presidents of any major bank in the United States, working at Manufacturers Hanover Trust Co.

Then a bachelor, he traveled the world from his Central Park West apartment in Manhattan (where John Lennon was his neighbor), often stopping at his second apartment in Rio de Janeiro.

"It was a very exciting time," he said. "I did a lot of things some people only dream about."

He knew he could keep up that pace for only so long, and when his employer offered early retirement in 1992, Samuels figured it would be a good time to go. He had been to Tampa years before to visit family. He was ready for a quiet life.

A friend had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and, at the friend's suggestion, Samuels went for an examination. He, too had prostate cancer. He caught it in time, and the experience jolted him into activism.

"I'm going to make sure people know about this," he told himself. And with the same passion that he had for his banking career, Samuels dived into educating himself, and then others, about this pervasive disease.

He started the National Prostate Cancer Coalition. He lobbied Congress, the National Cancer Institute and the Department of Defense (which has budget set aside for cancer studies) for additional funding.

Along the way he became acquainted with other prostate cancer survivors locally, including Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf and real estate tycoon Richard "Dick" Beard.

"He's one of these guys who, when he gets involved with something, he throws his whole self into it and he doesn't give up," Beard said. "And, remember, he doesn't do this for himself, he does this because he believes in it, because he's committed."

Samuels' efforts have paid off. When he embarked on his advocacy campaign, about $80-million a year was set aside for prostate cancer research in America. Today, he said, that number has grown to more than $400-million.

About two years ago, Samuels set out again to retire.

Still, he goes to the gym three days a week, for three hours each time. He reads five newspapers a day, answers an average of 300 e-mails a week, lectures part time at the University of South Florida, walks his two dogs, gardens and serves as a freelance consultant to the Food and Drug Administration reviewing new potential medicines for prostate cancer.

And he finally did marry, 10 years ago.

"Look, I am serious. I am going to start to write now," he said. "I just bought me a new computer, and I intend to sit by the pool and write that book while I still remember who that guy is in the mirror."

Contact reporter Sheryl Kay at skreporter@hotmail.com or (813) 230-8788.

FAST FACTS

Personal trivia

Favorite movie: All the President's Men

Favorite book: The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren

Personal hero: Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf fellow survivor

Favorite food: Fish

Favorite cause: Cancer research, treatment and prevention

Favorite travel destination: Africa and Brazil

Favorite sport: Football

Favorite political party: Independent

Motto: "The secret to living is giving."

[Last modified November 25, 2006, 10:39:51]