Bert Lancaster, 83, Rizzo aide

ONE OF BERT Lancaster's last acts of kindness was to send flowers to Carmella Rizzo for her 95th birthday last month.

"When I told my mother that he died, she said, 'He just sent me flowers!' " said her son, City Councilman Frank Rizzo Jr. "Bert was such a great guy. It was an honor to know him."

Bert had been Rizzo's administrative assistant for several years, after Rizzo became an at-large Republican city councilman in 1995.

Bert also had been close to Rizzo's father, the legendary mayor and police commissioner. "He was very special in the Rizzo family," the councilman said.

Wilbert Cornelius "Bert" Lancaster Jr., one of the greatest salesmen the Ford Motor Co. ever had, a Penn Relays promoter and runner into his 70s, a mentor of athletes, community activist and a decorated Army officer in the Korean War, died July 26. He was 83 and lived in Mount Airy.

Bert himself ran for City Council twice as a Republican, always an underdog for an at-large seat and never successful.

But, knowing Bert, it was hard to believe he was very upset about it. He was just positive by nature, a born optimist.

"He was a ball of energy," Rizzo said. "He never sat still. Once I told him I was going to get him a new chair, and he said, 'Why? I don't need it.'

"He loved helping people. He would come into the office with slips of paper and say, 'We have to help this woman. We have to help this man.' I'd say, 'Where did you get all these customers?'

"Whenever you asked him how he was, he'd say, 'I'm having a great day.' He was never negative. I never heard him say a bad word about anybody. He added to my life."

The Ford Motor Co. also loved him. He was one of the top four salespeople in the country for seven years running, routinely selling 40 to 50 cars a month. In fact, he sold Councilman Rizzo his first car, a 1978 T-Bird hardtop, dove-gray.

Bert was a member of Ford's coveted 500 Club.

In a 1995 interview, Bert told an Inquirer reporter, "I always overdo the job. I come early and stay late."

Bert was also a devoted churchman, a longtime member of Providence Baptist Church, where he ran the Sunday school. The church gave him its "Father of the Year" award in 1969 and again in 1976.

Among Bert's many interests was auto racing. He owned a 1962 Ford Fairlane named "Shazam" and raced it at the Atco Speedway in New Jersey.

He ran a cosmetics company, the Black Goddess, with some friends for several years.

Bert was born in West Chester to Minerva and Wilbert Lancaster Sr. He graduated from Central High School in 1946. He attended Lincoln University for a time, then transferred to Penn State, where he was on an All-America track team, belonged to eight honor societies, and was president of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.

He also participated in the Penn Relays, of which he was active as an organizer and runner into his 70s. His event was the 100-meter dash. In 2004, he came in fourth in the over-75 category.

Bert and a few friends created the Philadelphia Pioneer Track Club, which sponsored athletes and sent some to the Olympic Games.

He served on the Olympic Track Committee in 1984, sponsored the 1964 Philadelphia Summer Youth Games, and founded the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. International Freedom Games, which were broadcast in the U.S., Europe and the West Indies. A young Penn Wharton School student named Donald Trump assisted him.

Bert always kept in shape by running, and once referred to himself as the "fastest old man in the world."

In politics, he started as campaign manager for Michael Matthews when he ran successfully for mayor of Atlantic City in 1982. (Never mind that Matthews later served prison time for extortion.)

Bert also delighted in helping out in the campaigns of other political candidates in Philadelphia.

In the Army, he was first in a class of 216 in the Army's Leadership Training School, and 19th in a class of 262 in the Officer Candidate School. He won a Bronze Star for valor in combat in the Korean War, and left the Army as a captain.

Bert was active in community affairs in and around Germantown. He was chairman of the Men of Cliveden for many years and was past president of the Friends of Cliveden Park in Mount Airy. He organized jazz festivals in the park.

"He was well-versed in the Bible and always related the Bible to life," his family said. "He was a role model for his immediate and extended family and many others. Numerous family and friends sought Bert for his knowledge, opinion and confidence."

Bert married his childhood sweetheart, Grace, in 1951. Besides her, he is survived by three daughters, Lynne, Penny and Lori; a sister, MaryAnn; two brothers, Oliver and Byard, and one granddaughter.

Services: Memorial service 11 a.m. tomorrow, Oxford Presbyterian Church, 8501 Stenton Ave.