Texas Pantheon

Dear Editor,
    This morning when I read that Gov. Richards had died, I was overcome with sadness. I felt as though we'd lost not only a great political voice, but a connection to a period of time when Texas seemed on the verge of something radically new. As we know, it ended too soon, and her loss to gubernatorial challenger George W. Bush ushered in a very different era for Texas and our nation.
    Richards' passing also spurred my Texas pride and made me think of other cool Texas women who came and went before her: Barbara Jordan, Katherine Anne Porter, Babe Didrickson, Sippie Wallace, Janis Joplin, and so many others.
    Gov. Richards, you now join this proud pantheon of Texas women. Seventy-three years was too short a time for you to be here, but we are so grateful that you graced our world with your dazzling personality and enormous heart. You had style. You had class. You had chutzpah. You had us at “Poor George.”
    You will always make me proud to be a Texan.