On the recordJanuary 25, 2011
I had the opportunity to attend a memorial service and speak at a memorial service for my friend, Bill Ratchford. Bill and I first met in the early 1970s. Bill had been speaker of the Connecticut House and was serving as president of the National Conference of State Legislatures. I was about to be president of the Maryland Senate, and another former Member, Martin Sabo, was the speaker of the Minnesota House. The three of us became very good friends. Later in the week, the next week, we lost an extraordinary American, Sargent Shriver. I had the opportunity to speak at his wake last Friday night. The reason I mentioned Sarge Shriver, Bill Ratchford and Sarge Shriver were both extraordinary public servants who believed that service to others was their most important role in life in terms of their public service. Now, privately, they were both also representatives of extraordinary family leaders, revered by their families.
