The far-reaching influence of Kevin White
By Roy Greene, Alli Knothe and Colin A. Young Globe Staff and Globe Correspondents,January 31, 2012, 3:49 a.m.
Barney Frank (left), chief of staff for Mayor Kevin White, in 1968.(Globe File)
A major part of Kevin H. White's legacy was that the former Boston mayor attracted a group of bright, young thinkers to City Hall who believed in the power of public service. Many of them went on to influential careers in the city, state, and beyond.
Chief of staff for Mayor Kevin White.
Served as a state legislator before becoming one of the most influential members of Congress.
Learned from White: "When you're putting people in jobs, different jobs require different personal skills."
Paul S. Grogan
Led Boston's Neighborhood Development and Employment Agency.
Later became president of the Local Initiatives Support Corp. and is now president of The Boston Foundation.
Learned from White: "Politics is important. You cannot move society forward without political skill."
Micho Spring
Deputy mayor under White.
Now president of the communications firm Weber Shandwick New England and sits on numerous boards, including the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation.
Learned from White: "To take a gamble on people. To give them a big vision, the room to prove they have talent, and let them go."
Frederick P. Salvucci
Transportation adviser to White.
Became state transportation secretary and the driving force behind the Big Dig.
Learned from White: "If there is a conflict between your gut instinct of what the right thing to do is and your intellectual analysis, go with your gut."
Peter Meade
Served as director of the community schools program, ran White's Little City Hall program, and was parks commissioner.
Went on to become head of corporate affairs at Blue Cross and Blue Shield and chairman of the Greenway Conservancy, before recently being named Boston Redevelopment Authority director.
Learned from White: "Hire the most talented people you can find. Kevin's goal was to hire people smarter than he, and he failed every time."
Bruce Bolling
Worked in office of public safety and Franklin Field Little City Hall under White; later became first black president of City Council.
Learned from White: "You can be a visionary, you can be a change agent, you can do what's right for the city."
George Regan
White's communications director.
Founded Regan Communications Group.
Learned from White: "There are hands you have to hold and arms you have to twist."