Bob Leggett, Vienna Business Liaison Committee Chairman, Dies

VIENNA, VA — Robert "Bob" Leggett, who served as chairman of Vienna's Town Business Liaison Committee and other community positions, died Sunday. He was 80.

A retired Central Intelligence Agency employee, Leggett became chairman of the Town Business Liaison Committee during the COVID-19 pandemic and was a supporter of the Vienna Little League. Leggett is credited with helping bring awareness to businesses, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Bob loved Vienna and wanted to make a difference in his community," said Mayor Linda Colbert in a statement. "In his role as TBLC Chairman, he actively helped connect struggling businesses with resources to help them survive COVID-related economic hardship, and that made all the difference to their survival."

Leggett was a U.S. Coast Guard Academy graduate and was inducted into the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Athletic Hall of Fame for his athletic contributions, according to his obituary. One of his Coast Guard assignments was commanding officer of Coast Guard vessel during Operation Market Time in Vietnam, and he received the Bronze Star Medal with Combat V.

After his service in Vietnam, Leggett attended Lehigh University and received a Ph.D. in Economics while coaching basketball and teaching economics at two institutions. At the CIA, his focus was the Soviet Union's economy and military capability, and he later served as liaison officer of congressional affairs, deputy national intelligence officer for global and multilateral issues and academic coordinator. After retiring from the CIA, he was a consultant to the intelligence community and law enforcement.

Leggett was first appointed to the Town Business Liaison Committee in 2017 and became chairman around the time Vienna appointed its first economic development manager, Natalie Monkou. According to the town, Leggett helped lead the committee during the transition and determining the committee's role in Vienna's economic development strategy.

"Bob cared deeply about the business community," said Monkou in a statement. "He understood the value of the TBLC’s institutional knowledge, and he made it a point to foster collaboration between the TBLC and the economic development office to problem solve and to define emerging roles."

The Vienna Business Association noted in a Facebook post Leggett was involved with new business grand openings and enjoyed presenting the annual Carole Wolfand award to the most community-minded businesses.

"He attended all of the Grand Openings of our new businesses and spent extra time getting to know our new business owners and learning what was special about each of them," the Vienna Business Association shared in a post. "He officiated many Grand Openings of our Vienna businesses and spoke so genuinely and lovingly about their new ventures, and the support the TBLC, Town, and VBA would provide to make their new endeavors successful."

Leggett coached and managed teams with the Vienna Little League, Vienna Youth Basketball and McLean Youth Basketball. According to the Vienna Business Association, Leggett was also involved in the WINGS program at Madison High School, which fostered mentorships between businesses and high school students.

"He was very dedicated to bringing opportunities to young people in an effort to help them find their paths in life through local work opportunities," the Vienna Business Association shared on Facebook. "Bob spent many hours working with the Town, and the Vienna Business Association to identify local business mentorships that would provide young people with various options to help them grow, and curate their future paths."

Leggett was married to Carol (Burkholder) Leggett for 57 years. He is preceded in death by their son Greg Leggett, 53, who died two months ago. He is survived by two children, three grandchildren, a brother-in-law and sister-in-law.

A service will be held at 11 a.m. Friday at Vienna Presbyterian Church, followed by a reception at Westwood Country Club.

In lieu of flowers, the family requested donations be made to the Town of Vienna through the Bob Leggett Memorial Fund, 127 Center Street, South, Vienna, VA 22180.