Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, February 18, 1992 TAG: 9202180229
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DWAYNE YANCEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
BOWERS STICKS WITH SIDEKICK
At Woodrow Wilson Junior High School in the 1960s, David Bowers starred in a class-written play, "The Governor's Christmas Carol."He was the governor.
Danny Frei played the governor's aide - whose big scene was to take a punch at the governor.
Nearly a quarter-century later, Frei is still playing Bowers' aide, as his campaign manager in the mayor's race. Sort of. "David runs his own campaigns," Frei says. "You don't run anything for David."
But whatever you call it, Frei - a curly-headed fellow with a puckish grin - is the one who's doing the legwork.
Frei, 39, has spent much of his life in the restaurant business as a chef and manager, first in Boston, then Savannah, before returning to Roanoke to run B&G Salad Works and 1st Street Express and later Quality Produce on the City Market.
In between, Frei also headed the Old Southwest neighborhood group, acted at Mill Mountain Theater, and studied a little politics on the side.
"I've been studying the craft of politics for a good 10 years," Frei says. "It's just a hobby. I've read a lot, heard a couple of [University of Virginia political scientist Larry] Sabato lectures and tried to keep up."
Four years ago, he coordinated Bowers' re-election campaign. But in 1990 Frei also cost Bowers his position on the city's merger negotiation team. When he caught wind that the newspaper was planning a story on how the petition drive that forced the merger vote got started, Frei revealed that Bowers' persistent attacks on the county the year before were designed to create an atmosphere in which citizens were fed up with multiple governments.
He thought that would show Bowers as the father of consolidation; instead, the revelation of Bowers' calculation backfired and he was forced to resign as a negotiator.
Frei later left Roanoke again - to work for his brother's wall-covering firm in Baltimore. But last fall, he returned to Roanoke a second time, this time as a paralegal in Bowers' office. "David is a good boss," he says. "He's very exact in things that go out of the office. I pray to the god of Spellcheck."