Statesmen, schools and local leaders

America lost a hero Friday night when former President George H.W. Bush died at the age of 94.

His son and former President George W. Bush wrote a touching book several years ago titled "41: A Portrait of My Father," and I'm listening to the audio book Bush Sr. produced in 2000 titled "All the Best." It's a collection of letters from his time in the military to the Oval Office. Reading letters gives you a special insight into the type of person someone is and what they hold important in life.

Bush was a statesman, not just a politician. His service as president, vice president, ambassador and member of Congress was admirable. And as former Vice President Dan Quayle wrote for The Wall Street Journal last weekend, Bush was loyal and led by example.

"In our conversations after the 1988 election," Quayle wrote in the Journal, "the new president's best advice for doing the job was: 'Be prepared and be loyal.' Even so, he didn't press me at all to handle my responsibilities exactly as he had done. He encouraged me to find my own approach to the office -- a Quayle model. I told him the Bush model looked pretty good to me, and I would go with that.'"

One of the most impressive things about Bush, other than his example as a father to six children and husband to Barbara for 73 years, was his military service. As a Navy pilot Bush was forced to jump from his plane and land in the Pacific Ocean as he was under attack by Japanese forces in the Second World War. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.

George W. Bush gave a moving eulogy Wednesday at the funeral held in the National Cathedral.

"Last Friday, when I was told he had minutes to live, I called him. The guy who answered the phone said, 'I think he can hear you but hadn't said anything most of the day.' I said, 'Dad, I love you, and you've been a wonderful father.' And the last words he would ever say on Earth were, "I love you, too."'

He also quoted a section from his father's inaugural address:

"We cannot hope only to leave our children a bigger car, a bigger bank account. We must hope to give them a sense of what it means to be a loyal friend, a loving parent, a citizen who leaves his home, his neighborhood and town better than he found it. What do we want the men and women who work with us to say when we are no longer there? That we were more driven to succeed than anyone around us? Or that we stopped to ask if a sick child had gotten better, and stayed a moment there to trade a word of friendship?"

It's a reminder of the people and things that matter.

Wednesday morning I led a panel discussion with state Sen. Wayne Wallingford and state Reps. Kathy Swan and Donna Lichtenegger at Cape Bible Chapel. The panel was organized for students attending Cape Christian Community School and Prodigy Leadership Academy.

I was thoroughly impressed with the students' civic knowledge, their confidence and the thoughtful questions they asked their elected leaders.

One of the more innocent questions: "What's it like to be an important person?"

Rep. Lichtenegger gave the perfect response, telling the students that the three legislators shouldn't be considered the important people. Rather, it's their constituents, including the students, who are the important ones.

You might say it was a safe political answer. But there's a lot of truth to the statement.

The three Southeast Missouri legislators come from very different backgrounds and the overarching message to the students was to get involved and not to shy away from a life of public service -- whether in politics or the community. That the experiences they collect, books and commentary they read and knowledge they attain can translate to a life of public service.

There's much we should remember from George H.W. Bush's life. Love of God, family and country for sure, but a life of service is an undeniable theme.

Whether it is at the local level or as President of the United States, living a life of service is something in which we should all strive.

Lucas Presson is assistant publisher of the Southeast Missourian.