Dan Dutko In Memory Dan was the kind of guy who made you want to be better, be smarter, think bigger, care more. He fixed you with those amused eyes, and you found yourself reaching higher. This is among the greatest of human gifts. In the velocity of daily life, we don't often sense the delicate fabric that weaves us all together. It's only when that fabric is suddenly torn that we recognize its delicacy -- and its strength. This man leaves a Dan Dutko-sized hole in the fabric of all our lives; so many threads, so many colors, passed through his patient hands. He can never be replaced, but those threads will join together again in new ways, in better and more beautiful ways, because Dan was here. Farewell friend; we'll see you around the next bend in the road...   Michael North, Jock Gill; Greenstar Foundation   Tuesday, July 27, 1999 Daniel A. Dutko, Founder of Government and Public Affairs Firms, Dies from Accident Injuries in Colorado Daniel A. Dutko, 54, head of prominent government and public affairs firms in Washington and a close political associate of President Clinton and Vice President Gore, died today in Grand Junction, Colorado, from injuries sustained in a bicycle accident on July 25 in Aspen. Mr. Dutko, a member of the Democratic National Committee and co-chairman of Leadership 2000, the DNC's major fundraising effort, was the founder and chairman of The Dutko Group Companies Inc. In 1980, he formed The Dutko Group government relations firm with oil and gas companies as primary clients. Today The Dutko Group is one of the nation's top-ranked government relations firms. With specializations in energy, environmental, telecommunications, technology, health care, tax policy and appropriations, The Dutko Group was ranked among the top 10 firms in a 1998 Fortune magazine survey of the most respected government relations firms in the United States. He established The DCS Group, a public relations firm specializing in public policy, issues management, and corporate communications, in 1995. In 1998, with his senior business partner Ronald Kaufman, former Nebraska Governor Ben Nelson, and Craig Pattee, he formed the third of the Dutko Group Companies, a firm focusing on state government relations, Kaufman*Nelson*Pattee. With his partners Steve Perry, Ronald Kaufman, Mark Irion, Arthur Silverman, Gary Andres, and Alan Madison, Mr. Dutko put in place a strong leadership team for the three Dutko Group Companies. Steve Perry, Chief Executive Officer of The Dutko Group Companies, said on behalf of the partners: "Dan was a leader who relished the rough and tumble world of politics. While he loved his Democratic Party, he was fiercely bipartisan. He loved the firm that he built, but most especially he loved his wife and his children. In a town of bare-knuckled competitors he gave more than he took. He leaves behind a legacy of lives he has touched on both sides of the aisle. We will all miss him immensely." At the White House today, President Clinton issued the following statement: "Hillary and I are deeply saddened by the untimely death of our good friend, Dan Dutko. Dan has been a friend, an ally, and an advisor for nearly three decades. He enriched our lives with his enthusiasm and served his country with distinction. He deeply believed in the cause of the Democratic Party, and worked tirelessly to ensure that it would have the ability to communicate effectively with the voters. He was a devoted supporter of Israel and a champion of national service. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Deborah, and their two young children, Matthew and Jonathan." Mr. Dutko was born in Streator, Illinois, on January 15, 1945. As a teenager he joined the Air Force and served for four years, from 1962 to 1966. On leaving the military he became a missile systems test engineer for the Advanced Science Division of Eureka Williams in Normal, Illinois. Later, he was director of research for the San Angelo Communications and Electronics Company, in San Angelo, Texas. He also worked as executive director of the West Texas Lighthouse for the Blind. He received his bachelor's degree from San Angelo State University. In 1972, Mr. Dutko was coordinator of the McGovern for President campaign in West Texas. There he formed what was to become a lifelong friendship with another McGovern campaign organizer in Texas, Bill Clinton. Later he worked as chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Bob Krueger (D-TX), and chief of staff to U.S. Senator Donald Stewart (D-AL). When Senator Stewart lost his election bid in 1980, Mr. Dutko established his government relations firm. A prodigious political fundraiser, Dutko was National Co-Chairman of the Democratic National Committee's Leadership 2000 effort. He also was National Finance Chairman for Maryland Lt. Gov. Kathleen Kennedy Townsend. During the Clinton-Gore re-election campaign in 1996, he served as both vice chairman for finance and vice chairman for business outreach. He was finance chairman of the 53rd Presidential Inaugural in 1997. He is survived by his wife, Deborah Jospin, director of AmeriCorps, and two sons, Jonathan (age 6) and Matthew (age 5). He also is survived by his mother, Stella Senko, of Naperville, Illinois; two sisters, and a brother. Mr. Dutko was a member of Temple Sinai in Washington, D.C., where a memorial service will be held on Monday, August 2, 1999, at 1:00 p.m. Temple Sinai is at 3100 Military Road, N.W., Washington, D.C. Private funeral services and burial will take place in Savannah, Georgia, on Thursday, July 29, 1999. Mr. Dutko served on the board of directors of the U.S.-Korea Foundation, the board of trustees of Meridian International Center, and National Council for Political Management at the George Washington University, the board of directors of the Partnership for National Service, and the America-Israel Friendship League. (For information, contact Alan Madison, The DCS Group, (202) 484-2776.)  To make a contribution to this memorial page, contact Michael North by email.