Vladimir Marinich

Vladimir Marinich, an award-winning author and professor who spent more than four decades teaching at Howard Community College, died on March 2 at his home in Ellicott City, Maryland. He was 86 and had been diagnosed with glioblastoma. His beloved wife, Barbara Livieratos, and his children were with him at home when he died. In 1970, Vlad became the first professor hired at Howard Community College and would have a long and distinguished career teaching Russian history, Russian culture, and Western civilization. His passion for movies led him to design and teach courses on the history of science fiction and horror films. Vlad and his beloved wife Barbara led trips for college and community members to Russia and Greece. He loved the college deeply, co-authoring a history of the school published in 2020, and never considered what he did there to be “work.” In 2012, upon his retirement, he was awarded the rank of Professor Emeritus and an honorary degree. Vlad was born in 1936 in New York City to an émigré family who fled Russia after the Revolution of 1917. He was a proud graduate of Stuyvesant High School, one of the country’s premier high schools, and then earned a degree in anthropology from the City College of New York. He received a graduate degree from New York University before he moved to Maryland in 1964 and later earned a graduate certificate with honors in history from Johns Hopkins University. Vlad published numerous scholarly articles and after his retirement published two books inspired by his family’s role in Russia’s tumultuous history before the revolution. In 2017, SUNY University Press published Vlad’s translation of his grandparents’ memoirs, titled The Truth of the Russian Revolution. The book was awarded gold and bronze awards as the best history book of the year by the Academic and Independent Press. In 2021, Vlad’s account of his grandfather’s life was published as The Last Noble Gendarme. He and Barbara recently completed a work of historical fiction, inspired by Vlad’s grandmother’s life. In the last few years, Vlad lectured on Russian history and culture at different universities; chaired a history panel at Columbia University; and presented at senior centers, churches, and library groups. He and Barbara have traveled extensively, including to Haiti and Tanzania where they continued their decades-long tradition of volunteer work. His favorite destination was Ireland, which he enjoyed with his very loved children and grandchildren. Vlad is survived by his wife, Barbara; his children and their spouses, Greg and Cat, Diana and Michael, Betsy and Drew, Alec and Kelly, Cole and Elena, and Theodora and Jim; and his 13 Grandchildren, Jack, Nicholas, Megan, Erin, and her husband Sean, Mick, Benjamin, Jeremy, Paxton, Thea, Boden, Olivia, George, and Edward. In lieu of flowers, his family has invited you to donate in his memory to any of the following organizations: -Living Water Children’s Fund at https://www.lwcfund.org/donate/ -Howard Community College (designate Vladimir Marinich Endowment) at https://commerce.cashnet.com/cashnetg/static/storefront/howarddev/catalog/DONATE -The Glioblastoma Foundation at https://glioblastomafoundation.org/get-involved/donate A celebration of Vlad’s life will be held March 25 at 1:00 p.m. at Howard Community College’s Smith Theater.

Vladimir Marinich

March 2, 2023