In the two decades they worked together, Alan Plante learned a lot from Christ Sanidas. Driving was not one of them.

"He would love to drive around the county and look for (code) violations," said Plante, Orange County, Florida Building Official of his former boss who held the position from 1987-2007. "He drove like there was no road in front of him, only to the sides. It was scary."

Damage to his psyche aside, Plante said Sanidas was a mentor and an icon, so much so that even having known him since 1987 he still refers to him as "Mr. Sanidas."

"I have a lot of respect for him," Plante said of Sanidas, who passed away in Winter Garden, Florida, earlier this month at the age 80 following a long illness. "He could be tough and stubborn sometimes, but I think he was trying to make me tougher. He helped me find my direction."

Robert Boyer, Codes, Products and Training Coordinator for the Palm Beach County Planning, Zoning and Building Department and an ICC Board Director, said Sanidas always had a smile on his face and loved to laugh. But he was always serious about codes.

"Christ believed in the value of effective building codes and knowledgeable code officials," Boyer said. "He dedicated his life to code development, professional development and code administration. His leadership shaped the direction of all of the organizations he was associated with and his encouraging spirit mentored many young code officials to become effective professionals."

Those he mentored would include code officials in Tennessee where Sanidas served as Building Official for Shelby County for nearly 27 years before "retiring" to Orlando. During his time in Memphis, Sanidas was President of the Board of Directors of the Southern Building Code Congress International, an ICC Legacy Organization, from 1981-83. When Sanidas "retired" to Orange County, he became the manager of the first SBCCI office there. In 1989, Sam Gerace took over the position.

"He was a real, real nice guy," Gerace said. "Any time we had a conference, he would come over and buy up a bunch of our leftover code books. He would say, 'I need 10 gifts to bring back.'"

And chances are he would bring back a few stories as well. Phil McMahan, ICC Senior Regional Manager, has fond memories of sitting in the lobby of an Alabama hotel, drinking ouzo and heckling fellow conventioneers as they arrived.

Bob McCormick, Chairman of the Building Code Administrators and Inspectors Board, remembers another conference. "Maybe in Memphis, we had finished a banquet dinner and retired to one of the hospitality suites in the hotel," he said. "Wandering around, Christ heard Greek music coming from a ballroom below the mezzanine where we were. So he went to investigate, found a big Greek wedding celebration in progress and remained there to celebrate with a family he did not know. He said he was welcomed warmly and had great food and a wonderful time."

But it was all business once the code hearings began, McMahan said. "For years, he would be in the middle of the fray over code matters," he said. At least when he arrived at the meetings, McCormick added.

"At the monthly building officials' meetings in Central Florida, 10 or 15 minutes after the meetings were called to order, he was routinely greeted with the welcome, 'Start the meeting, Christ is here!'" McCormick said. "He will be missed by many of the 'old-timers' around Central Florida."

And everyone will miss his expertise. Gerace said Sanidas was at his best when looking over new products. "I would say about 75 percent of the time, he found that they would not work as designed."

That included a time when the industry was talked into using treated wood beams in roofing support. "He said, 'There hasn't been enough testing on this yet,'" Gerace remembered. "Sure enough, about 10 years later, we had some fires where firefighters were falling through the roofs. The beams had denigrated so bad. He was very, very astute."

"Christ was extremely well versed in building codes and standards," said Code Council Chief Operating Officer Dominic Sims. "He commanded a great deal of attention when he spoke at a code development hearing."

"He was a dear man and a true 'character,'" added Karla Price Higgs, ICC Vice President of Member Services. "Everyone who remembers Christ probably has a favorite story about him.

"I think I learned something in practically every conversation I ever had with Christ," she continued. "He loved telling me little-known facts about Florida or Tennessee. Either speaking with him one-on-one or listening to him address a room filled with code professionals, it was easy to see his intelligence and sense of humor. Our sympathies go out to his wife Doris and the rest of his family and friends."

Sanidas graduated with two Bachelor's degrees from the University of Memphis and was a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity. He served in the U.S. Army in the Korean War as a Greek language interpreter to the Greek Expeditionary Force. He was promoted to Staff Sergeant before receiving an honorable discharge and returning to Memphis.

Sanidas was a Member of the Code Council as well as the Building Officials Association of Florida. In 1999, he was appointed by Governor Jeb Bush to the Florida Building Commission, where he served until his retirement from Orange County in 2007.

Plante said he'll miss the long talks he and "Mr. Sanidas" often had. "He always loved talking about building code issues," Plante said. "Building codes were his life. And working with him was a learning experience in many ways.

"He took me under his wing and groomed me to be the building official I am today. I'll miss him."