B. B. "Sixty" Rayburn

B.B. "Sixty" Rayburn, state senator of the 12th District, was born on Aug. 11, 1916. Sixty passed away Wednesday, March 5, 2008, at St. Tammany Hospital in Covington. He is survived by two daughters, Tommie Jean Rayburn and Betty Ann Bedwell and husband William; five grandchildren, Michael Dodds and wife Shari, Benjy Rayburn and wife Michelle, Keith Bedwell and wife Andrea, Alicia Harvin and husband Michael, and Monica Truax; and great-grandchildren, Natalie, Drew and Rebekah Dodds, Matthew and Zachary Rayburn, Alex and Katelyn Bedwell, Trey and Rayburn Harvin and Trevor Truax. Mr. Rayburn was a Baptist, a Mason and a Shriner. He was a member of the Louisiana Cattleman's Association and past president of the Louisiana Thoroughbred Breeders Association for many years. A farmer, cattleman, horseman and avid hunter, Rayburn worked at Crown-Zellerbach corporation as a pipe fitter for 30 years. He was a graduate of Sumerall High School and Sullivan Memorial Trade School. His political career began in 1944, when he was elected to the Washington Parish Police Jury, becoming the youngest police juror in Louisiana. He served as vice president of that body until 1948, when he was elected to serve in the state House of Representatives. He remained in the Louisiana House until 1951, when he was elected to serve an unexpired term in the state Senate. Rayburn, who served under former Gov. Earl K. Long, was continuously returned to the Senate by his constituents for 44 years and was the acknowledged dean of the Louisiana Legislature. As a legislator, he served on the following committees: Conservation, Education, Transportation and Public Works, Industrial Relations, Labor and Capitol, Long-Range Highway, Retirement, Interim Emergency Board, Bond Commission and was chairman of both the Senate Finance Committee and the Joint Legislative Committee on the Budget for many years. He was elected delegate to the 1973 Constitutional Convention, where he served as chairman of the Committee on Revenue, Finance and Taxation. In 1959, Sen. Rayburn was awarded an honorary doctorate from Loyola University in recognition of his knowledge and understanding of state government. In 1973, he was made an honorary member of the Louisiana Veterinary Medical Association in recognition of his years of service to the cause of "the health of man and his domesticated animals" in Louisiana, and for his help in creating the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine. Sen. Rayburn was the first lay person to receive this honor. In 1978, Senate Concurrent Resolution 135 was passed to name the school of veterinary medicine the Rayburn School of Veterinary Science in honor of the Rayburn family of Washington Parish due to the fact that Sen. Rayburn was instrumental in the creation of the veterinary school on the campus of LSU and in honor of Sen. Rayburn for his leadership, dedication and contribution to the state of Louisiana. Sen. Rayburn was instrumental in obtaining funds for construction of a new Sullivan Vocational-Technical Institute, which was put into use in September 1971, at a cost of $985,730. In 1948, Sen. Rayburn was instrumental in obtaining $500,000 for the construction of Washington-St. Tammany Charity Hospital and formal dedication was held Jan. 6, 1951. Sen. Rayburn secured funds in the 1979 and 1980 legislative sessions in the amount of $29.6 million for the construction of Washington Parish Correctional Center. This created some 400-plus jobs for his area. On Aug. 31, 2006, the Washington Parish Correctional Center was renamed the B.B. "Sixty" Rayburn Correctional Center in honor of his hard work and dedication for securing this institution for Washington Parish. Visitation for former Sen. Rayburn at Poole-Ritchie Funeral Home, 216 Alabama Ave., Bogalusa on Friday, March 7, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Visitation at Palestine Baptist Church, 59369 Palestine Church Road, Bogalusa, on Saturday, March 8, from 9 a.m. until the funeral at 11 a.m. View and sign the guest register online at http://www.pooleritchiefuneralhome.com.