Harold F. "Bud" Otis (born September 13, 1938) is an

Elder An elder is someone with a degree of seniority or authority. Elder or elders may refer to: Positions Administrative * Elder (administrative title), a position of authority Cultural * North American Indigenous elder, a person who has and tr ...

of the

Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

and an American publisher and politician.

Early years

Otis attended Andrews University where he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1965.

Professional career

Otis was president of the

Review and Herald Publishing Association The Review and Herald Publishing Association was the oldest of two Seventh-day Adventist publishing houses in North America. The organization published books, magazines, study guides, CDs, videos and games for Adventist churches, schools and ind ...

from 1978 to 1988. In 1981, when Otis moved the company to new, $14 million facility in

Hagerstown, Maryland Hagerstown is a city in Washington County, Maryland, United States and the county seat of Washington County. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2020 census was 43,527, and the population of the Hagerstown metropolitan area (exten ...

, the publishing house had 350 employees and an annual payroll of $6.7 million. From 1989 to 1990, Otis served as assistant to the president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. Based in Silver Spring, Maryland, the General Conference is the governing organization of the worldwide

. Otis was president of Family Enrichment Resources from 1991 to 1997. Otis served as

chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. They may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

of the

Board of Directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit organiz ...

of the Maj. Gen. Boyd C. Cook Foundation from 2012 to 2013.

Political career

Otis was the campaign chair for Ruthann Aron's campaign for U.S. Senate in

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...

. Otis joined

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

Roscoe G. Bartlett Roscoe Gardner Bartlett Jr. (born June 3, 1926) is an American politician who was U.S. Representative for , serving from 1993 to 2013. He is a member of the Republican Party and was a member of the Tea Party Caucus. At the end of his tenure in ...

's staff in 2001, and he served as his

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

beginning in 2003.Bourg, Allison.
Political Notes: Maryland Republicans criticize Obama's vacation choice: Otis Joins Vogt Team
. ''The Capital'' (Annapolis, Maryland). August 1, 2013.Dishneau, David.
Aide to Md.'s Rep. Bartlett quits; eyes House run
. ''Associated Press''. December 1, 2011. Bartlett considered not running for reelection in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, and Otis resigned from Bartlett's staff in December 2011 when the fact that he was actively lining up support to run for his boss's seat before Bartlett had decided to retire, made it impossible for him to continue as chief of staff. Otis ended up deciding not to run for the office.Pershing, Ben.
On Md. ballot, Bartlett faces tough race, Edwards escapes challenge from Ivey
. ''The Washington Post''. January 11, 2012. Otis served as

of the Ethics Commission of Frederick County from 2012 to 2013. Otis joined as a campaign adviser for David E. Vogt, who ran for

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

. Vogt ended up withdrawing from the race. Otis became a member of the Board of Elections of Frederick County in 2015.

Frederick County Council

In 2014, Otis ran as the Republican candidate for one of the two

at-large At large (''before a noun'': at-large) is a description for members of a governing body who are elected or appointed to represent a whole membership or population (notably a city, county, state, province, nation, club or association), rather than ...

positions on the first elected council of Frederick County. Otis was one of thirteen candidates for the two at-large seats. Otis campaigned to reduce traffic by increasing the number of jobs in the county.Rodgers, Bethany.
http://infoweb.newsbank.com/iw-search/we/InfoWeb?p_product=AWNB&p_theme=aggregated5&p_action=doc&p_docid=14F25431F87C6B30&p_docnum=92&p_queryname=2 County Council at-large candidate Bud Otis
. ''The Frederick News-Post''. May 3, 2014. Otis wanted to make sure roads were being built in pace with development, but he did not want development to be so dense that residents fail to interact with each other. Otis said he would reduce the county's budget spending and increase long-term planning for future expenses, such as building roads and schools. Otis and Billy Shreve won the Republican primary election; Otis received 20 percent of the vote. In the general election, Otis won an at-large seat on the Council with 27 percent of the total vote.
. ''Maryland Manual On-line''. Maryland State Archives. Retrieved December 2, 2016. Otis was sworn in on December 1, 2014. Following his election to the Council, the editorial board of the

Frederick News-Post ''The Frederick News-Post'' is the local newspaper of Frederick County, Maryland. In addition to discussing local news, the newspaper addresses international, national, and regional news. The paper publishes six days a week. History On October ...

endorsed Otis for council president.Bud Otis should be council president
. ''The Frederick News-Post''. November 30, 2014. The county voted 4–3 to elect Otis president of the Council.Rodgers, Bethany.

. ''The Frederick News-Post''. December 2, 2014. Otis joined with three Democrats in repealing a law making English the official language of Frederick County. Otis changed his party affiliation from Republican to unaffiliated on May 19, 2016. Otis said, "I think the direction of the Republican Central Committee is not where the majority of this county is, among Republican voters."Gaines, Danielle E.
Republican groups call on Otis to step down, return donations: Otis says no
. ''The Frederick News-Post''. June 7, 2016.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Otis, Bud Andrews University alumni Living people Maryland Independents Maryland Republicans People from Indiana People from Middletown, Maryland 1938 births American Seventh-day Adventists