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Business leader recalled for helping others

Peter Theobald of Access Business Development died suddenly. Funeral is today.

Peter Theobald

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By Jessica Heffner, Staff Writer 12:34 AM Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Peter Theobald was known as a dedicated businessman who used his knowledge to help others succeed.

Mr. Theobald, the president and chief executive of Access Business Development & Finance Inc. died suddenly Sunday, Nov. 22. He was 58.

He was instrumental in the creation of the agency he led, the end-product of the merger of the Warren and Butler County Certified Development Companies in May 2008. The move allowed the agencies to consolidate operations into Liberty Twp. and become a non-governmental entity, said Patrick Landi, board of trustees president for ABDF.

“He was a very dedicated and hard-working fellow and an excellent businessman,” Landi said. “He was very aggressive and he was willing to consider different approaches.”

Through the ABDF, Mr. Theobald used his business savvy and spirit for helping others to assist businesses across two counties, said Steven Jacobs, now acting president and CEO of ABDF.

“It goes without saying that Peter was an integral part of Access Business Development and his loss is a devastating event to us, but part of Peter’s legacy is going to be that he left us with his attitude that there are no 'can’ts.’ We will go on to proceed with the dream Peter and I established for our organization,” he said.

Known as a hard worker, after obtaining a bachelor’s degree from the University of Cincinnati and two master’s degrees from the University of Southern California, he co-founded his own business, Comprehensive Technologies International, or CTI. In 1980 the business, which did government contractoral work, moved from California to Washington, D.C. After retiring from CTI in 1996, Mr. Theobald moved to Wyoming near Cincinnati where he “bounced around and tried different things,” including teaching Spanish at area schools, said David Theobald, Mr. Theobald’s son.

Fluent in Spanish, he used his language skills to help with the St. James of the Valley Church’s mission program at a sister parish in El Salvador to offer a scholarship program for children there, his son said.

“He really was a key part of that program,” he said. “He saw life as a big adventure and he was always a very optimistic guy.”

Mr. Theobald is survived by his wife, Linda, 57, and children Michael, 31, David, 25, and Andrea, 19.

Due to the upcoming holiday, his funeral Mass is 10 a.m. today, Nov. 25, at St. James of the Valley Church, 411 Springfield Pike, Wyoming with burial following at Spring Grove Cemetery, 4521 Spring Grove Ave., Cincinnati.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Sister Community Program at St. James of the Valley Church.

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