Stephanie Tubbs-Jones passes away
8/20/08
Big bummer: Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs-Jones passed away about 90 min. ago.
Family, hospital confirm congresswoman's death - (The Plain Dealer)
There's a great set of photos of STJ on the PD's website here.
Also from the PD:
Stephanie Tubbs Jones' life was filled with many "firsts": first African-American woman to serve as Common Pleas judge in Ohio, first to serve as Cuyahoga County prosecutor, first to represent Ohio in Congress.
And PD reporters Olivera Perkins, Robert L. Smith, and Margaret Bernstein do a great job of conveying Tubbs Jones's popular appeal in
Stephanie Tubbs Jones leaves a legacy of friendship
Even people who didn't know U.S. Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones responded to her as if she were a friend.
That describes my reaction to the news that she'd been hospitalized. I didn't know the congresswoman personally. I did hear her speak a few times and admired her competence: this was a politician who could get things done. The PD called her " both principled and pragmatic," which seems exactly right.
"Stephanie, Stephanie," was the constant refrain that followed the congresswoman as she traveled her district.
It could have come from a voice in the crowd at public events, like the annual 11th Congressional District Labor Day picnic in Luke Easter Park. Or maybe it was from the person behind her on line at a local takeout. Despite the air of familiarity, people calling out her name often barely knew her.
That didn't matter to the congresswoman. She always responded with that high-wattage smile that drew people to her -- a smile that made them feel comfortable enough to start off on a first-name basis. So Wednesday, when they learned that Tubbs Jones was gravely ill, many people felt as if a close friend had fallen.
4 comments:
Lila,
I know what a legacy Stephanie Tubbs-Jones leaves behind. She had many "firsts" in Ohio politics and I recall many of her political statements when I manned the Editorial Desk at the Cleveland Jewish News. I hope we all say a prayer for Mervyn Leroy Jones, Jr., her son, who is now an orphan following the loss of his father in 2003.
Thanks for your comment, Alan. Do you have any idea how old Mervyn Jones, Jr. is?
There's a really nice tribute to Stephanie Tubbs Jones on the Huffington Post: Stefan Roberts' "Farewell to a Child of the American Dream: Goodbye Tubbs Jones"
I HAROLD FORD SR. WISH THAT I COULD HAVE GOTTEN TO KNOW OR MEET MRS.JONES BEFORE HER PASSING. MY REASONS, I HAVE LEARNED THAT I'AM A DIST. RELATIVE. HER MOTHER MRS. MARY LOONEY WAS MY GRANDMOTHER. MY FATHERS NAME IS MR. HAROLD LOONEY, HIS GRANDFATHER AND STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES GRANDFATHER WERE BROTHERS. I HAROLD FORD SR. NOW RESIDE IN EUCLID. OHIO.
Mr. Ford, she was a great lady. I wish you'd had the chance to meet her too!
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