HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Alvin and Nancy Ravizza hadn’t seen former Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rellonce since a tour of her official home during Christmas, but they chose to join the throng of state residents, dignitaries, and insiders at the state Capitol who honored the late Republican on Tuesday.
In 1981, when former Democratic Governor Ella Grasso also lay in state, the Berlin pair made their final trip to the Capitol building. They claimed they still admire Rell’s takeover of Connecticut in 2004, when the state was shaken by a corruption crisis and her predecessor resigned.
Nancy Ravizza remarked, “As governor, she healed our state.” That’s how I remember her.
“Very admirable woman,” Alvin Ravizza remarked. We are here for that reason.
The first Rell was Grasso, the second female governor of the state, who in office from 2004 to 2011. Her campaign companion, former Governor John G. Rowland, resigned from office in 2004 amid a federal investigation and potential impeachment, after she had previously served as a state lawmaker and then as lieutenant governor from 1995 to 2004. In the end, he served 10 months in prison after entering a guilty plea to one federal corruption count.
Rell was greeted by about 1,000 well-wishers at an open house at the state Capitol a few days after her initial swearing-in ceremony.
After a brief illness, Rell, a mother of two and grandma of four, passed away at a Florida hospital on November 21, according to her family. Her age was 78.
In today’s world of divide and mockery, Republicans and Democrats alike recall Rell with fondness on Tuesday as a unique kind of politician who was willing to cooperate with people from opposing political parties but could also be harsh when needed.
According to former state senator Donald Williams, a Democrat, Jodi Rell was fundamentally a dignified individual with integrity who wished to serve the people of Connecticut to the best of her ability and was open to working with Republicans, Democrats, and independents. Even if we didn’t agree on everything, that’s why we had such a great working relationship.
He continued, “I miss that period in our politics.” And perhaps, we can return to that.
Democratic Governor Ned Lamont was to give one of four eulogies at an afternoon funeral service at Hartford’s Cathedral of St. Joseph, where Rell’s casket came draped in a blue Connecticut state flag, demonstrating Rell’s propensity for bipartisanship. Lamont claimed that once he assumed office, he and Rell became close friends and would meet the public at the governor’s mansion to greet them on holidays.
According to Lamont, people would greet her as if they had just seen her last week, even though she had been out of politics for ten or twelve years. She would often respond, “Oh, come on, just call me Jodi,” I recall.
Pauline Kezer, the former Republican Secretary of State who served alongside Rell in the state House of Representatives, spoke to her former colleague as a trailblazer who assumed office in difficult circumstances and was successful in restoring public trust in state government.
She claimed that she controlled with firmness and calmness, two difficult qualities to combine.
According to Democratic Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz, Rell also possessed the talent of relatability and frequently mentioned shopping at Marshalls, a bargain department store. Marshall was even the name of her German shepherd.
According to Bysiewicz, she’s just a person you would want to talk to if you saw her at the grocery store or in line at Marshalls. Additionally, everyone respected her.
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