Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, August 2, 1993 TAG: 9308020025
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Now he gets up early on a Friday morning to go to the Roanoke Country Club for a golf lesson from club pro Phil Owenby.
Noel Taylor, a golfer?
No way, you say. This couldn't be the same man who worked 14 to 18 hours a day for nearly 17 years as Roanoke's mayor.
But it is.
Taylor and his wife, B.J., quietly joined Roanoke Country Club after he left the mayor's post, breaking the racial barrier at one of the city's most exclusive golfing clubs.
Taylor gets excited now when he talks about his new hobby. He already knows the names of many golfers on the professional tour.
"I don't expect to beat Greg Norman [who recently won the British Open], but I can put on my golfing clothes and look like him," he said. "If I could get my scores into the upper 80s, I would be happy."
His best score so far: a 95.
A year after leaving public life, Taylor feels and looks better than he did when he decided - after learning he had prostate cancer - not to seek a new term.
His cancer has responded well to treatment and it remains dormant. He takes medication to prevent it from spreading, and his doctors are pleased with his progress.
Wearing a red knit shirt, a white jacket and white trousers during a recent interview, Taylor, 69, appeared contented and relaxed.
Golf is part of an exercise program recommended by his doctors to keep him strong. In addition to golf, he tries to work out at least twice a week at either the Roanoke Athletic Club or High Street Baptist Church, where he is pastor. The church has a community center with a gymnasium and exercise equipment.
He gets more sleep now, too - seven or eight hours a night, instead of four or five when he was mayor.
Although his health has remained good, Taylor doesn't have any second thoughts or regrets about leaving the mayor's post.
"Looking back, I think I made the right decision not to seek a new term," he said. "The discovery of the cancer came at the same time I was trying to decide if I would run again."
If his cancer had not been discovered, Taylor said, he might have sought re-election - even though David Bowers had announced he would run for mayor regardless of whether Taylor was in the race.
"It is natural to rise to such a challenge," he said.
Taylor said he still misses seeing City Council members and city officials, but he is enjoying his life out of politics.
"I don't believe that I will ever get the city completely out of my blood. It was such a big part of my life for so long," he said. Taylor served on council for 22 years, including 17 as mayor.
When he stops by the Municipal Building occasionally, some city employees hug him.
"It makes you feel good - to know that people haven't forgotten you," he said.
Taylor said he is thrilled that the financing package for Hotel Roanoke has been completed and work has started on the project. He served as co-chairman of the Renew Roanoke campaign, which raised $7 million to help finance the hotel renovation.
He supports Bowers' effort to get Amtrak passenger service for Roanoke and Southwest Virginia.
At Bowers' request, Taylor has remained chairman of the Henry Street Revival Committee, which is developing plans to revive an area that was once the center for black hotels, nightclubs, restaurants and other businesses.
Now, Taylor has a less-demanding schedule with fewer pressures.
"If I had remained mayor, I don't think I would have made the progress I have in my physical condition," he said.
Taylor is spending more time on his church work. He has been pastor at High Street Baptist for more than 30 years.
He is doing more evangelical work, having been the featured minister at revivals in Warrenton and in Knoxville, Tenn., in the past year. He has revivals scheduled in Blacksburg and Winston-Salem, N.C.
Taylor has also helped form a group that is working with the Virginia Municipal League to find new ways for cities and counties to work together more closely. The group, which calls itself Friends of the VML, includes former mayors of several cities.
He remains concerned about the financial pressures on Roanoke and other cities that no longer have the right to annex.
"In the absence of annexation, we must find a way to work across borders to deal with problems. The bottom line is that we need shared responsibility" for caring for the poor and disadvantaged, he said.
In the past year, Taylor has also begun working in the Teen Outreach Program to help reduce Roanoke's rate of teenage pregnancy, the highest in the state.
Taylor said one good thing about his slow pace is that he has more time now for his 10-year-old grandson, Sean Law. Sean likes sports and Taylor plans to take him to a Baltimore Orioles game before the end of summer.
And what about a political comeback for Taylor?
He said he's been asked whether he might run for council next year when three seats will be up for election.
"It's not something I have given serious thought to. I have been waiting to see how my health is," he said. "I don't want to do anything that might make it appear that I am second-guessing council and the mayor."
by CNB