David G. Boschert, a tall, trim former Marine, state delegate and County Council member from Crownsville, has died. Boschert, who always met people with a grin and a handshake, was 63.

He was diagnosed four months ago with pancreatic and liver cancer. He died about 6:30 p.m. Thursday, according to friends of his family.

Boschert began his career in public office on the county Board of Appeals. Starting in 1984, he served 10 years on the County Council as a moderate Democrat, and from 1999 to 2007, he was a moderate Republican in the House of Delegates. He ran unsuccessfully for other offices, including county executive and U.S. House of Representatives.

U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., was the speaker of the House of Del-egates who administered the oath when Boschert was sworn in as a delegate.

"We became friends, I had great respect for him," Cardin said Friday morning. "He wanted to get things done, and didn't care about party labels. He was sincere about wanting to get things done in a constructive way."

Former County Executive O. James Lighthizer recalled that his and Boschert's public careers overlapped for more than 30 years.

"Dave was a really straight-up guy," Lighthizer said. "He had integrity. There wasn't a duplicitous bone in his body. With David, what you saw was what you got."

Del. Cathy Vitale, R-Severna Park, who considered Boschert a mentor, described him as the perfect politician for Anne Arundel County, a place still small enough that public officials and constituents know each other on a first-name basis.

"He was everywhere, at every firehouse, at every carnival," Vitale said.

"David loved people. David loved storytelling," Vitale said. "He could hold an audience like no one I have ever seen, and I have seen some of the world's best speakers."

Early last month, Boschert sat with a reporter from The Capital and reminisced about his life in public service. "I loved it. It was wonderful," said Boschert, struggling to hold back tears.

Boschert said he used a number of tactics in his time as an elected official - in particular, he liked being the swing vote.

Boschert recalled a time on the County Council when he wouldn't tell anyone how he was going to vote on the budget that the county executive, Lighthizer, wanted passed.

The upshot was that Lighthizer needed Boschert's vote, and Boschert traded it for a list of goodies for his district. The result was that the county installed lights on athletic fields at Arundel High School, bought more trucks for local public works crews in the Crownsville area, and upgraded the local firehouse.

"They called me 'the hammer,' " Boschert said. "You can't drive the nail without the hammer."

In the General Assembly, Boschert led a number of fights, but often didn't get full credit for legislative victories because he was in the Republican minority. In one case, he was responsible for passing a bill to have insurance companies pay for prostheses following breast surgery.

Boschert knew he couldn't get the bill passed alone, so he teamed up with a senator from the majority party.

Boschert did the bulk of the work, including lining up a long string of breast surgery patients to testify. The measure became law, and the senator got the credit.

"I know politics. I don't want the glory. I want the success of the victory," Boschert said.

Other Republicans sometimes shunned Boschert for voting with Democrats in the House of Delegates, especially when he was a member of the House Judiciary Committee.

"You have got to play to win," Boschert said. "I would love to see my party fight for issues they can win, and not for ideology."

Though his health was failing this spring, Boschert continued fighting for his community. Last month, he called on officials to turn the defunct Crownsville mental hospital into a campus for nonprofit and charitable groups, and for a veterans home.

He said the Crownsville facility has been paid for with taxpayers' money and the buildings could be put to great use. Instead, nearly the entire campus is being allowed to decay.

Boschert broke down and wept when talking about the Crownsville site.

House Speaker Michael E. Busch, a Democrat from Annapolis, called Boschert "one of the better angels."

"His love was public service," Busch said. "Dave has really been dedicated to the service of his country and the service of his community."

Marvin Bond was one of Boschert's closest friends. They met in the 1970s, when Bond was a spokesman for state Comptroller Louis L. Goldstein, and Boschert was a local newscaster.

Boschert was unusual for keeping his ego in check, Bond said, and being willing to work behind the scenes.

"There are an awful lot of people who know David has made a lot of contributions," Bond said.

In 1969, Boschert served as an enlisted man in South Vietnam. A retired Marine Corps Reserve captain, he was well known for his love for the military and for veterans. He served as chairman of the Anne Arundel County Veterans Commission.

In his final interview, Boschert said of his life, "I am at peace. I am just frustrated I can't do more." He went on to exhort people to solve the problems besetting their communities.

"There's so much more to be done," he said, "there's so much more that can be done."

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Hardesty Funeral Home in Annapolis.

Copyright © Capital Gazette Communications LLC, 2011.