“As a family, we will never forget his love for us,” the family said.
Bob Graham, a former senator, Democratic governor of Florida and former presidential candidate, has died at age 87, his family announced Tuesday evening.
“We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of a visionary leader, a dedicated public servant and, most importantly, a husband, father, grandfather and great-grand -loving father: Bob Graham”, we can read in a press release from the family on X.
The Bob Graham Center for Public Service also confirmed the former senator’s death, sharing a gallery of photos from his life. The center also released a statement on service.”
The family said Graham, the son of a state senator who himself served three terms as a senator in the U.S. Senate, “dedicated his life to improving the world around him. Memorials to this devotion are everywhere – from the Everglades and beyond to the natural treasures he was determined to preserve, to the colleges and universities he championed with his commitment to higher education, to the global understanding he contributed to promote through its work with the intelligence community, and much more.
Graham’s love of nature began at an early age. He grew up on a cattle and dairy farm in the Everglades, according to the Bob Graham Center for Public Service.
He studied at the University of Florida and later earned a law degree at Harvard, beginning his political career locally soon after, serving in the Florida House of Representatives.
His next political move was to the Florida governor’s mansion, where he served three terms, from 1979 to 1987.
Graham then went to Washington, D.C., where he served as one of the state’s two senators from 1987 to 2005.
After leaving Washington, Graham became a senior fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.
In 2010, then-President Barack Obama appointed him to the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling.
He also served as chairman of the Commission to Prevent the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction and Terrorism, according to the Bob Graham Center for Public Service.
“While he valued his opportunities to represent others in public office, Bob Graham’s favorite jobs were those he spent alongside Floridians every day,” his family said in their statement Tuesday.
One of his greatest joys in life was also being a grandfather.
“Bob Graham told people that his favorite title was not governor or senator,” the family’s statement read. “That was the name his grandchildren gave him: Doodle. ‘When I’m really good, they call me Super Doodle,’ he liked to say. For 87 years, Bob Graham was much more than just really good. “
His family called him “unforgettable.”
“As a family, we will never forget his love for us, the love he had for Florida, the United States and the world, and the love that so many people showed him. We thank God for the gift of his life,” they said. concluded statement.
He is survived by his wife, Adele Khoury Graham, four children and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
News Source : abcnews.go.com
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