Richard James Munro

DEAR BETH,

ALTHOUGH I DIDN'T KNOW YOUR FAMILY, I'M SENDING MY LOVE AND SYMPATHY TO YOU ALL. LITTLE DID WE KNOW WHEN I SAW YOU MONDAY AT THE OFFICE THAT YOU'D BE GOING THROUGH THIS. I'LL CERTAINLY KEEP YOU IN MY PRAYERS. TAKE CARE AND GOD BLESS.

Beth, Joshua, and Benjamin:

I am shocked and very much saddened by the death -- so premature! -- of your husband, your father. In my early days in politics, Dick was a tremendous help to me as he would visit shut-ins and collect their mail ballots. He won many votes for me, and in close elections (of which I had a few) these votes may very well have provided the winning margin. I owe him a great debt of gratitude.

I haven't seen Dick for many years, but I have thought...