On the recordNovember 18, 2015
I pay tribute today to the extraordinary life of one of America's finest women who recently passed on to be with our Creator. Mrs. Dorothy Helms, also known to many of us as ``Dot,'' was the long-time best friend and wife of the late U.S. Senator Jesse Helms. As a member of the Helms Senate family, I grew to know both of them very well. Senator Helms asked me one day, he said: ``David, do you know where I get all my good ideas?'' Without giving me a second to respond, he said, ``Dot, you know.'' For those of us who knew the two well, Dot was, in fact, the conservative of the family, and a strident and forceful communicator of her opinion on all matters. Dot Helms was a trailblazer in her own right. She was one of the first women to graduate from the University of North Carolina with a degree in journalism and later went on to work for the News & Observer as a society page editor. Meanwhile, Jesse Helms was there working as a sports reporter. The rest, of course, is history, and the two of them helped change history. As much as Dot Helms will be missed by all of us, something tells me the tall, lanky fellow from Monroe, North Carolina, is delighted to have her back at his side. ____________________
