Wellstone Remembered at Crash Site 10 Years Later
Posted at: 10/25/2012 5:23 AM
| Updated at: 10/25/2012 10:12 PM
The late Sen. Paul Wellstone and those who died with him in a plane crash 10 years ago were remembered with laughter and love on Thursday.
Wellstone, a liberal Democrat and former college professor, had been running for a third term when he died 12 days before the 2002 election.
The crash also killed his wife, Sheila Wellstone, their daughter, Marcia Wellstone Markuson, campaign staffers Tom Lapic, Mary McEvoy and Will McLaughlin and two pilots.
The event at the Wellstone Memorial and Historic Site near Eveleth is hosted by Wellstone Action, the nation's largest training center for progressives. The group was founded by Wellstone's sons, David and Mark.
On Thursday, the snow fell gently down on about 100 people, as they walked through the memorial site, and left flowers and prayers.
Many crowded around the tent as the ceremony began. Those who knew and loved the Wellstones, including a former staffer and the husband of Marcia Wellstone Markuson, shared memories and how they've been able to cope for the past ten years.
"It's been a struggle to make sense of their deaths. And since I still can't do that, I focus instead on remembering them, and staying committed to their ideals," said Lisa Radosevich-Craig, a former staffer.
State and local leaders attended the ceremony, which also included a poem reading, and two songs.
They then went to the Clinton Town Hall for fellowship and more memory sharing.
Wellstone Action also plans to honor the late senator in Washington in late November.
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