Ann Richards, Remarkable Woman

This is a view of the Texas State capitol rotunda in Austin where Ann Richards is lying in state, and where I would be paying my respects, were I not attending the University and College Design Association (UCDA) annual conference at a nearby hotel. As Travis Co. commissioner, State Treasurer, other capacities, and finally governor, Ann included more women and minorites in political appointments than any other politician or group of politicians before or since. She would have gotten a second term as governor had it not been for a particularly nasty, rotten smear campaign mounted by Karl Rove for his boss, GWB. She fixed everything that needed fixing in her first term, and would have gone on to lift Texas back to its former glory had Bush & Co. not worked their stinking swift-boat syndication and fooled the voters.

Ann was one of my sheroes. She was building a leadership school for young women here in Austin which should open in '07, and left instructions that donations be made to the school in lieu of flowers. You can bet that even though it may be only a few bucks, I'll make sure her school gets a couple from me. Goodbye, Ann, I will miss you, and I thank you for your good work.