John Dingell, longest-serving member of Congress, remembered as man of great moral courage
DEARBORN, Mich. – With choruses of "America the Beautiful," "The Star Spangled Banner" and "Ave Maria" filling the Church of the Divine Child in Dearborn, Mourners from across metro Detroit and the political spectrum gathered in Dearborn Tuesday to pay their respects to former U.S. Rep. John Dingell, the longest-serving member of Congress, who was described as a "man for the ages."
Vice President Joe Biden, in his eulogy, said Dingell, who died Thursday at the age of 92 after a battle with cancer, "led with great moral courage and vision" during his 59 years in Congress.
And one word best describes Dingell, Biden said: dignity.
"I told my granddaughter that what I liked about John had nothing to do with the fights we were in together. I can sum it up in one word. He believed everyone without exception was entitled to be treated with dignity," he said. "Dignity was how John, walked, how John talked, how he carried himself and how he treated everyone."
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Biden added that one of his best qualities was understanding the problems facing his constituents.
"He understood that health care was more than keeping you healthy. It was about peace of mind," Biden said. "It was about people going to bed at night, staring at the ceiling and saying, 'My god, what happens if I get sick? We’ll lose everything.' John got it. He got it to his core."
His eulogy was not all serious, though, starting out with "Bless me father for what I'm about to say," before crossing myself and praising Dingell for knowing the difference between a "a hot and cold mic," referring to gaffes that he has made over the years.
He called Dingell "a man for the ages," recalling a famous quote about Abraham Lincoln and called upon Shakespeare's Hamlet to say "I shall not look upon his like again.
"Hail to John, God Bless you, buddy," Biden concluded.
The funeral, originally expected to start at 11 a.m., was delayed 30 minutes because of weather. And a military transport that was delivering members of Congress and two speakers for the service had to head back to Washington D.C. because of the icy weather conditions.
Dingell, known as "Big John" or "the Truck" because of his imposing stature, was being eulogized at Dearborn's Church of the Divine Child by a bi-partisan group of politicians. They included former Vice President Joe Biden and civil rights icon U.S. Rep. John Lewis of Georgia, both Democrats, and his long-time friend, Republican U.S. Rep. Fred Upton of Kalamazoo. But Lewis and Upton were on the plane that turned around after circling Detroit but unable to land because of slick runways.
Also on the plane: Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and U.S. House Chaplain Pat Conroy, who was supposed to deliver the homily.
Father Terrence Kerner filled in for the homily saying the congressional delegation and Conroy “were scheduled to fly in today into paradise. But because of the weather, the plane turned around , they’re back in DC. And right before Mass, I found out I had to preach,” he noted, saying he had nothing prepared. “And then I remembered that John had a sense of humor.”
Kerner offered a touching tribute to Dingell, saying that his first priority was taking care of his constituents.
“Even though his district kept bouncing around, he told his staff, even though they’re not in my district, take care of them, they’re my people,” Kerner said. “That’s what he was about.”
He also told the story of an elderly woman who approached him this week at a Dearborn restaurant after overhearing Kerner talking about the funeral.
“She said, ‘what a great man, he did so much for us,’” Kerner recalled, noting that the woman said she knew Dingell well, but had never met him. “My husband said were it not for John Dingell, I would not have a job, been able to put food on the table or put my kids through school.”
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Members of Dingell's family — his wife, U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell; his son and daughter-in-law Christopher and Cindy Dingell; daughter Jennifer Dingell and grandchildren Garielle and Robin Dingell — participated in the funeral with readings and delivering the communion gifts to the priests celebrating the mass. Debbie Dingell's sister Kate Bartley also delivered a reading from Ecclesiastes.
After the service, Dingell's casket, along with his wife, U.S. Rep, Debbie Dingell, were scheduled to be flown to Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington by military transport. A motorcade was then scheduled to take them past the U.S. Capitol.
It was uncertain how weather would impact that.
As part of that motorcade, members of the House and Senate were expected to come outside to watch the motorcade and pay their respects.
A bipartisan group of mourners are expected to gather Thursday for a second service in Washington, where former President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, former Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner of Ohio and U.S. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, a Maryland Democrat, will be the speakers at a funeral mass at Holy Trinity Catholic Church.
Dingell, who was a veteran, is expected to be interred at Arlington National Cemetery though there were no immediate details about that ceremony.
It was fitting that Dingell, who died Thursday at the age of 92 after a battle with cancer, had members of both political parties pay tribute to his nearly 60 years in Congress. He helped craft and pass some of the most consequential measures during his time in the U.S. House of Representatives, including Medicare, the Civil Rights Act, the Clean Water and Clean Air Acts, the Endangered Species Act and the Affordable Care Act.
His colleague, U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, a Lansing Democrat, summed up Dingell's tenure as she made her way into the Dearborn church Tuesday morning.
"He fought hard but was able to compromise. In order to work across the aisle, you have to be able trust the other person. People trusted his word," she said.
Dingell retired from the House in 2015 and his wife replaced him after winning his seat in a 2014 election.
Throughout his career, he remained an advocate of Michigan manufacturing, its signature auto industry and its natural resources.
Born on July 8, 1926, in Colorado Springs, Colo., Dingell spent much of his formative years in Washington, D.C. His father, John Dingell Sr., who had ties to organized labor, moved the family back to Detroit and won election to a newly created congressional district in 1933.
After the war, Dingell entered private practice in Detroit, before joining the staff of U.S. Circuit Judge Theodore Levin and then becoming an assistant prosecuting attorney for Wayne County. After his father died in 1955, Dingell was elected in a special election to replace him. He was 29.
His funeral service was filled with people who had worked with him over the years, from constituents of his western Wayne County district to politicians he had served with, including former U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, and his brother former U.S. Rep. Sander Levin, former Michigan Gov. Jim Blanchard and Stabenow. Ninety members of Congress were expected to attend the funeral.
Catherine Daligga of Ypsilanti, a member of the Washtenaw County Democratic Party, came to the funeral despite a steady, icy rain that snarled traffic.
“He was gracious and approachable,” she said.
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Contributing: Todd Spangler, David Jesse and Matt Dolan, The Detroit Free Press
Follow Kathleen Gray on Twitter @michpoligal.
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