Constantine

After 39 years in law enforcement, Thomas Constantine announced yesterday that he would step down as the administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration.Constantine, 60, said his decision was not motivated by political considerations. He said he wants to return to New York and spend more time with his family. But he has disagreed, sometimes forcefully, with the Clinton administration's portrayal of Mexico as a full ally in fighting the flow of drugs into the United States.In February, Constantine asserted that Mexican drug trafficking organizations posed the worst criminal threat to the nation that he had seen in nearly 40 years in law enforcement.

Each school day you watch your child climb the steps of the school bus. Or maybe you drive your daughter or son to school. Either way, your child is routinely delivered from home to the other safe place, school.Last-minute reminders and instructions are given, an extra "Love you," an extra "Have all your library books?" Something has been forgotten, some permission slip, some folder, something that seemed very important at the time. Then you say goodbye to your child and think nothing of it.Until Tuesday.

Stanley J. Kihn, 78, health agency inspectorStanley J. Kihn, a retired city Health Department inspector who fought in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II, died Sunday of pneumonia at Hamilton Nursing Center in Hamilton. He was 78.He served with the 75th Infantry Division in Europe and was wounded Dec. 26, 1944, during the last great German offensive in the Ardennes. He was decorated with the Purple Heart and discharged at war's end with the rank of captain.After the war, Mr. Kihn returned to the University of Maryland, College Park, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1947.

Gilman coach Johnnie Foreman tried to congratulate Gene Constantine at last night's Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association Indoor Championships. But with two events remaining, Mount St. Joseph's coach wasn't ready to make any acceptance speeches."It's not over yet," said Constantine, pointing to the high jump area at Essex Community College. "I'm the eternal pessimist. If we don't score in the high jump and we blow the [1,600 meters], anything can happen."Constantine was pleasantly unsurprised.

Buddy Constantine caught the eye of young Clementine Grunder back in the late 1940s. Elbows-deep in the guts of a truck, Buddy was working for his old man's freight company, pulling wrenches in the alley behind the Locust Point rowhouse where Clementine lived with her family."

For 22 years, until retiring two years ago as a homicide detective, Gene Constantine wore two different faces.By day, he combed the halls of Mount St. Joseph, recruiting athletes to participate in the various sports he coached there. By night, he combed the streets of Baltimore for murder suspects."Most people who read the papers and found out that Joe Blow was killed, or arrested for selling drugs -- it might not hit close to home like it does with me," said Constantine, 54, coach of the Gaels' No. 2-ranked track team.

Elizabeth R. Constantine, 78, businesswomanElizabeth R. Constantine, who was a partner in Broadview Management Corp., died of heart failure Monday at home in her native Randallstown. She was 78.She was a partner for 35 years in Broadview Management Corp., which owns and manages Broadview Apartments on University Parkway and Dulaney Valley Apartments near Towson. Both vTC were developed by her late father, John K. Ruff Sr.She was a founding board member and trustee of the old Baltimore County General Hospital, now Northwest Medical Center, in Randallstown and a member of the Woman's Club of Roland Park, the Woman's Club of Randallstown and Piney Branch Golf Club.

Performer of the YearBernard Williams, Carver, senior: Williams, who was ranked second nationally in the 60-meter dash and fifth in the 200 in a recent issue of Track and Field News, was a repeat champion at the Class 3A State Championships, winning both the 100-meter dash (10.7 seconds) and the 200 (21.5). The 5-foot-11, 170-pounder, who transferred to Carver from Southwestern for his junior year, remained unbeaten at Carver in the both the 100 and 200 dashes. "I've seen plenty of track talent in my time," said Carver 36-year coach Walter Cole, "but I've never seen this kind of speed.

Baltimore doesn't often see a show that's all stars, but Grimaldis has one this month: painters Willem and Elaine de Kooning, Grace Hartigan and Hans Hofmann, all from the abstract expressionist era; landscape painter Eugene Leake and realist painter Alice Neel; abstract sculptors Anthony Caro and Anne Truitt; conceptualist photographer John Baldessari. And the biggest surprise is that nothing's for sale.This is "Raison d'etre," an exhibit marking the 20th anniversary of the gallery's opening in September 1977.

Mother Marie Antoinette de la Trinite,76, the superior general of the Little Sisters of the Poor who was instrumental in expanding the order's presence worldwide, died Wednesday in Paris.Mother de la Trinite joined the order in 1942 rather than attend medical school, as her father wanted. She took her final vows seven years later. In 1957, she was named provincial superior in Brittany. Seven years after that, she became the order's superior general, a post she held until her death.Mother de la Trinite was responsible for opening 32 missions around the world.

A 54-year-old businessman, found bound by zip ties inside his Canton vending machine business last month, has died after being taken off life support, and police said Wednesday that homicide detectives are investigating. Constantine "Dino" Frank of Baldwin, who also owned pool halls and shopping centers in Baltimore County, was discovered July 29 in the vestibule of Precision Vending, in the 1000 block of S. Lakewood Ave., face-down and bound. He had managed to get one hand free, but suffered a stroke during the ordeal, according to police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi.

EVANGELINE "Babe" passed away peacefully on March 21, 2009. She was preceded in death by her husband Theodore James Constantine and oldest son Dean Nicholas Constantine, and is survived by her son Professor Niel T. Constantine, and her three grandsons, Evan, Mathew, and Austin. She was the daughter of Nicholas and Olga Coroneos, and sister of the late Stanley Coroneos, George Coroneos, and Proxy Rutledge. Friends may call at Ruck Towson Funeral Home, Inc., 1050 York Road (beltway exit 26A)

On Thursday, October 23, 2008, MARGARET LOUISE "Peggy" SPICER (nee Constantine) 50, of Owings Mills; beloved wife of Craig B. Spicer; devoted mother of Crystal Swem and her husband Jason, Bryan Spicer, and Sarah Spicer; loving grandmother of Ella Swem; cherished daughter of Marian Constantine and the late Irvin Constantine, daughter-in-law of Patricia Spicer and the late Bartus C. Spicer, Jr.; also survived by her sisters Lois Witty and Arlene Williams....

Constantine "Gus" Klosteridis, a retired baker and Howard Street pizza shop owner, died of cancer complications Saturday at the University of Maryland Medical Center. The Timonium resident was 85. Born in Baltimore and raised near Patterson Park, he graduated in 1941 from City College and then enlisted in the Navy. He was stationed at Camp MacDonough Naval Training Center in Plattsburg, N.Y., and at Fort Pierce, Fla. He earned a bachelor's degree at Loyola College and joined his father and brother in their Athens Baking Co. on Bouldin Street in Highlandtown, which they expanded to mass-produce hamburger rolls.

Constantine's Sword, according to the credits, is "based on" the book by James Carroll calling for enlightenment and clarity on the history of Christians' relationships with Jews. But it's more like an eloquent sidebar to the book, focusing on Carroll himself. This ex-priest and son of a Cold War Christian soldier was drawn to the Catholic Church for Jesus' messages of peace. But he has spent his adult lifetime noting the disconnect of those teachings to Christian oppression of the Jews and other Semites (including Arabs during the Crusades)

On April 25, 2008, GEORGE R. HAMMER, SR.; beloved husband of Jean M. Hammer (nee Seitz); devoted father of Terri L. Hammer; George Robert Hammer, Jr., and Lisa A. Stiles; loving son of Florence Georgacopoulos (nee Smith) and the late George L. Hammer; loving grandfather of George III, Kyle, Shannon, Dustin,Samantha, Shane, Taylor, Jessica and Kristin; dear brother of Panagiota Georgacopoulos, Janice Dempsey and the late Constantine Georgacopoulos; brother-in-law of Frank J. Seitz. Friends may call at the family owned Duda-Ruck Funeral Home of Dundalk, Inc., 7922 Wise Avenue on Sunday, 3 to 5 and 7 to 9 P.M. Funeral service will be held at 8 P.M. Cremation to follow.

Zenlike aloofness. Deadpan line-delivery. A certain dumbstruck cool verging on total blankness. These are some of Keanu Reeves' actorly calling cards -- a skill set that allows him to portray everything from a time-traveling stoner (Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure) to a Messiah-like demigod (in the Matrix trilogy). You wouldn't necessarily associate such dude-itude with gun-toting, perp-busting cop roles. But Reeves' turn in this month's Street Kings marks his fifth outing as a man with a badge and a mission.

Believers beat skeptics dead-cold when it comes to affecting the reception of a big-budget movie. Catholic groups that protested the release of that free-thinking spectacle The Golden Compass congratulated themselves on its disappointing returns at the box office this week. But you haven't heard a peep from any atheist groups who might protest I Am Legend for implying that God is responsible for saving a remnant of mankind from a virus that turns most people into zombielike vampires. Midway through, the last thing the military-scientist hero, played by Will Smith, sees before he thinks he'll succumb to a swarm of "Dark Seekers" is a glittering cross.

On December 5, 2007, STEPHEN R. GREEN; devoted son of the late Osten and Mary Green; beloved brother of Anthony P. Green and the late Constantine J. Green. Also survived by many loving nieces, nephews, relative and friends. Christian Wake Service at Charles L. Stevens Funeral Home, Inc., 1501 E. Fort Avenue, Locust Point, MD 21230 on Sunday, 2:30 P.M. Mass of Christian Burial at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, on Monday at 10 A.M. Interment in Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Cemetery. Family invite friends to call at the funeral home on Sunday, 1 to 3 and 5 to 7 P.M. Family request, in lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Sister Catherine Cress' Ministry 1532 E. Fort Avenue, Locust Point, MD 21230.

It's been five years since he left us. Five years since his heart stopped at age 69, an act that, even now, feels much bigger than a man's physical death. It was dubbed the end of an era by a thousand scribes, but that barely scratched the surface. It was another reminder that even our granite-chinned icons - the ones whose strength we hope is a reflection and embodiment of our strength, as a city, a people, and a nation - cannot escape the steady drumbeat of mortality. It has been five years since John Constantine Unitas, the "Greatest Quarterback Who Ever Lived," died on Sept.