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City celebrates volunteer’s 42 years of service

Posted on: January 14, 2025

By CASEY GLICKMAN

Alan Bradford plays Santa Claus during a Christmas breakfast hosted by the College Park Recreation Board.
PHOTO CREDIT Courtesy of Janet Bradford

From selling hot dogs during ball games at Duvall Field, to playing Santa Claus at the College Park Community Center, to coaching softball, Alan Bradford has been a College Park icon for more than 40 years.

The College Park City Council in December presented Bradford, retired from his job as a heavy equipment operator, with the 2024 Jack Perry Award, recognizing his impact as a volunteer in College Park.

“Alan’s countless acts of service … have fostered a spirit of community and improved the quality of life for residents, embodying the legacy of Jack Perry himself,” Mayor Fazlul Kabir wrote about Bradford on his blog, “Kabir Cares.”

The council established the award in 2013 to recognize the late Councilmember John Edward “Jack” Perry (District 2), who served for 26 years and was actively involved in the community, according to the city. Members of Perry’s family stood alongside Bradford as he accepted the award.

“Once the nominations came out, we as a family were very proud that you were there, and without a question … you were our choice,” Joseph Perry, Jack Perry’s son, told Bradford during the meeting.

Bradford, who grew up in Ocean City and moved to College Park in 1973, started volunteering a decade later when he became the coach for his daughter’s softball team. He flourished as a volunteer, coaching various sports for the College Park Boys and Girls Club. Suddenly, he had more than just his three kids to call his own.

“They were like my kids. I had 100 kids,” Bradford said. “If they had trouble at home, if they had trouble with school, they could always come up and we would sit down and talk.”

Bradford eventually became the equipment manager and later the president of the Boys and Girls Club.

“Our kids grew up down on the ball field and in the equipment room because that’s where their dad was,” Janet Bradford, his wife, said.

Sports had always played a crucial role in Bradford’s life. He played Little League baseball in Ocean City and spent time repairing the ball field. 

Years later Bradford was often seen on Duvall Field, managing the lights and working on field maintenance, according to his nomination letter.

When he was not on the field, Bradford said, he was behind the snack bar, cooking food for the kids as they finished their games.

“A kid never went without a hot dog, a kid never went without a piece of candy, whether he had the money or not,” Martin Klapac, a College Park resident and longtime friend of Bradford’s, said.

“I would go home from work, and I would fix my family’s dinner, and then at 5 o’clock, I went to the College Park snack bar and fixed everybody else’s dinner,” Bradford said.

Those who didn’t spend much time on the ball field might recognize Bradford as the man behind the white beard and red Santa costume during the Christmas season.

Bradford served on the College Park Recreation Board for 18 years, helping plan events like breakfast with Santa Claus and brunch with the Easter Bunny, Janet Bradford said. When the board was looking for a new Santa, Bradford volunteered on a whim, and stuck with it for the next 20 years.

“I thought he was crazy,” Klapac joked about the first time he met Bradford. “Everything he did was for the kids. His whole life just revolves around the kids being happy.”

Bradford, 73, remains involved with the city as a member of the College Park Ethics Commission, which ensures city officials and employees are held to the high ethical standards set by College Park.

“Alan has just been a part of this community forever,” College Park resident Karen Klapac, a longtime friend, said. “I can’t imagine this town without [him].”

While Bradford’s days of putting smiles on kids’ faces as a volunteer are mostly behind him, the person he continues to make smile is the one who has stood by his side through it all: his wife.

“He is a big joker,” Janet Bradford said. “He just makes me laugh.”

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