Early Sunday morning Councilmember Ric Gordon died suddenly, at home. He was 41 years old.
“The sudden passing of Ric Gordon is a great loss to the Greenbelt community, Prince George’s County and the State of Maryland,” said Mayor Emmett Jordan. “Ric Gordon was very passionate about Greenbelt, politics and his important role as a councilmember. He will be missed tremendously.” County Executive Angela Alsobrooks said, “our community has lost a dedicated public servant.” “Councilmember Gordon was not only a valued member of the Greenbelt City Council but also a cherished member of the Prince George’s County community. We will remember him for his commitment to making Greenbelt a better place for all,” she said in a statement.
Born in 1982 in Prince George’s County, Gordon attended Prince George’s County Public Schools and then Morris College in South Carolina. He went on to earn a master’s in public administration. He was completing a certificate program at the Academy of Excellence in Local Governance through the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy Academy this fall. He was employed as a government contractor at the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration.
Gordon had wanted a career in politics since he was 10 years old, when he ran for class president. “You can’t grow up in this area and not be in love with politics,” Gordon previously told the News Review. “I love the service and the people’s work. I’ve been living it since I was a kid,” he said in an interview in January (see the January 5 issue of the News Review).
Gordon had just begun his second term on Greenbelt City Council, a role that filled him with excitement. This year and in 2021 he was the first candidate to gather sufficient signatures and file his intention to run. He was well loved and well known in the city, ever present at events and full of enthusiasm. His presence and activism in the community was how he met his wife, Carla Johns, whom he married in February.
Gordon organized Greenbelt’s first Pride Festival in 2022, adding a Pride Parade this year. He participated in numerous walks to school, voter registration and community rallies, food and school supplies giveaways, and other community events. On November 11 he hosted his third Thanksgiving and Things Giveaway, helping to provide food bags and more than 500 other items, such as clothes, books and household goods to Greenbelt families for the Thanksgiving season. He was an advocate of what he called “The People’s Work.”
Though Gordon had suffered from heart problems in the past and had emergency surgery in February, he had been full of his characteristic energy and enthusiasm and continued to participate in Greenbelt events over recent days, including the city’s annual Gobble Wobble on Thanksgiving Day. Shocked and devastated community members gathered at Roosevelt Center Monday evening to share stories, songs and tears.
Later on Monday evening, the council convened for their regularly scheduled meeting but no business was conducted as they remembered their colleague. (See our article, “Greenbelt City Council Grieves Loss of Ric Gordon at Meeting.”)
Ric Gordon leaves behind his wife, Carla Johns-Gordon, four adult children and six grandchildren, as well as numerous supporters and friends in the City of Greenbelt and beyond. Visitations have been scheduled for Friday, December 1, 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. at Borgwardt Funeral Home, 4400 Powder Mill Road in Beltsville. The public is welcome to attend.