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George Mitrovich was born in San Diego, California. His primary education took place in San Diego area public schools; his secondary at Pasadena (Nazarene) College and, briefly, the School of Theology, Clairemont, California. In May of 2007 he was awarded a Doctor of Human Letters Degree by Point Loma Nazarene University. In 1966 he was named administrative assistant to Lt. Governor Glenn Anderson of California. In the presidential campaign of 1968 he was a press aide to Senator Robert F. Kennedy. Subsequently, he served as press secretary to two United States Senators, Charles E. Goodell, Republican of New York, and Harold E. Hughes, Democrat of Iowa. In addition, he worked for two members of the United States House of Representatives from New York, Republican Seymour Halpern, and Democrat Lester Wolff. In 1975 Mr. Mitrovich founded The City Club of San Diego, a non-partisan public forum. In 1985 he founded The Denver Forum. The City Club and The Forum are consistently rated among the top 10 best public forums in America. The two organizations have presented more than 1,500 programs in the public interest. In addition, he chairs for the Boston Red Sox The Great Fenway Park Writers Series, as well as chairing the Red Sox’s annual January 31 birthday tribute to Jackie Robinson. In addition, he served as chairman of the Better Government Association (BGA), an independent citizens committee committed to San Diego's future. He also served as chairman of The Committee on Charter Reform, whose proposal for changing San Diego's government from council/manager to mayor/council was adopted by the voters in 2004 (and overwhelmingly adopted in 2010 by voters as the city’s permanent form of government). He served similarly as chairman of The Committee of 2000, a citizens group that successfully supported the building of the San Diego Padres’ new downtown ballpark (the measure passed with 59.7 percent of the vote). In that capacity he spent six years and contributed more than 4,000 volunteer hours to help secure its realty – a reality that dramatically changed the southeast quadrant of San Diego’s downtown. Andrea Tevlin, the City Council’s Budget Analyst, has said that Mr. Mitrovich’s efforts represented an “in-kind contribution to the city and Padres of one million dollars.” Mr. Mitrovich has served on numerous public boards and agencies, including: San Diego Stadium Authority, eight years (chairman, 1984); vice-chairman, San Diego County Charter Review Committee (two terms); member, San Diego County Fiscal & Justice Committee; member, board of directors, San Diego Pops; member, board of directors, San Diego Crew Classic; member, executive board of the National Conference for Community and Justice (NCCJ); member, board of directors, Citizens for Community Values (a children anti-pornography organization), and member, board of directors, Crime Victims Fund. He is the first San Diegan elected to the board of the California Historical Society (CHS). Recently he was nominated by San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders and approved by the City Council as a member of the city’s Human Relations Commission. He served two years as president of the Ecumenical Council of San Diego County, an organization of more than 125 Christian churches (and was a board member for 10). A layman, he has preached in some of America’s leading churches, including Washington’s famed National Cathedral. In 2008 Mr. Mitrovich was featured in “The Great Minds of Methodism” series presented annually by the First United Methodist Church of Houston – the first layman chosen. He believes that John Wesley, a priest in the Church of England and founder of Methodism, set the standard for Christians to follow by his witness on issues of social justice. Wesley was especially revolted by the evil of racism (he called American slavery, “That execrable villainy which is the scandal of religion, of England, and of human nature”). Wesley’s insistence upon the equality of all God’s children has greatly informed Mr. Mitrovich’s life, and feels deeply a Christian’s duty to treat people with respect and dignity. With the Reverend George Walker Smith, he co-founded the San Diego Coalition for Equality, which came in response to racial unrest in Southern California. The United States House Representatives considered their proposal for a National Day of Unity, which was offered with leading clergy in response to President Clinton's speech on race relations in America. He was named by Charter 100, a professional women's organization, "Man of the Year"; by Pacific Bell, an "Outstanding San Diegan"; by the San Diego Mediation Center, "Peacemaker of the Year," and was given the NAACP's "Community Involvement" Award. On two occasions he has been honored by The Catfish Club, San Diego's leading African-American professional organization. In 1996 the California-Pacific Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church honored Mr. Mitrovich "For His Ministry and Labor to Overcome Racism and to Build A Multi-Cultural Church..." In addition, the San Diego Press Club awarded him its "Sitting Duck Award," which was presented by Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr., Democrat of Delaware. He has written extensively for North American newspapers, including Toronto Globe and Mail, The New York Times, Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Baltimore Sun, San Diego Union Tribune, Louisville Courier Journal, The Denver Post, Seattle Times, The Rocky Mountain News, San Antonio Express-News, Los Angeles Times, and the Litchfield County Times in Connecticut. He has also written for The Christian Century, Frontier, Interpreter (a United Methodist Church magazine), United Methodist Reporter (a national Methodist newspaper), Good News (an independent Methodist magazine), and The New Oxford Review (a Catholic lay monthly). His essay on Joe DiMaggio appears in "Joltin' Joe DiMaggio", a book published by Carroll & Graf. His essay on the Boston Red Sox winning the 2004 World Series was featured in the spring 2005 edition of Elysian Fields Quarterly (EFQ), a baseball literary review. More recently his essay on Baseball Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn of the San Diego Padres was a cover story in San Diego Sports magazine. Mr. Mitrovich's speech to The City Club of San Diego and The Denver Forum on the need to publicly fund federal election campaigns appeared in Vital Speeches of the Day. Subsequently it was selected for Representative Speeches in America, a book published annually on the nation's 15 most significant speeches. Three other speeches have been published in Vital Speeches: "The Dignity of Work," his commencement address to 5,000 people at California's Palomar College; "When the Walls Come Tumbling Down: The Arts in America," a speech delivered to the East Valley Partnership's Evening of the Arts celebration in the Organ Recital Hall at Arizona State University in Tempe, and, "More Than a Game: The Moral Equation," delivered at Boston's famed Fenway Park to a symposium on "The Red Sox, Race, and Jackie Robinson." As a result of the symposium, Senators John Kerry and John McCain, joined by Congressmen Richard Neal and Peter King, introduced a bill to obtain posthumously the Congressional Gold Medal for Mr. Robinson. The bill – the final draft of which was written by Mr. Mitrovich – passed the Congress and was signed by President George Bush. The President presented the medal to Rachel Robinson and her family in a special ceremony at the United States Capitol, March 2, 2005. Unwilling to yield to time's inexorable toll, he plays for the Marston Mets in the San Diego Adult Baseball League (SDABL), 38 and over division (he’s over 38). In 2002, with a record of 16-2, the Mets were regular and post-season SDABL Champions. During the 2009 regular season they were 15-0. In 2003, 2004, 2007, and 2009, the Mets qualified for the playoffs. In 2010 they won the Spring SDABL Championship. He is married to La Verle Ann Sutherland Mitrovich. They have three children: Carolyn, Mark and Tim. Carolyn has a son, Matthew. Tim and his wife, Lisa, have two daughters, Jessica and Juliette. George Mitrovich chairs for the Boston Red Sox The Great Fenway Park Writers Series.     George Mitrovich on the big screen opening night of the 2004 major league baseball season at Petco Park, the new home of the San Diego Padres. Mr. Mitrovich chaired a citizens committee that was instrumental in helping secure public support for the ballpark.