U.S. Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson's white casket was carried into Texas State Cemetery in Austin Wednesday afternoon by some of her grandsons serving as pallbearers.
Family, friends, and political leaders said goodbye to Johnson but not to her legacy.
Sen. Royce West called Johnson a friend and political mentor. He spoke at her funeral and her graveside. He said her work must continue.
"Eddie Bernice says that there is work still needs to be done,” West said. “We'll remember that and the work she is talking about left unfinished we'll continue to do that work to make certain that her legacy is fulfilled."
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Among her many accolades, Johnson was one of the Texas Legislative Black Caucus founders. The current chairman and others said Johnson laid the groundwork for all others to follow.
"She leaves behind such a big legacy,” Texas Representative Ron Reynolds said. “It's going to take a lot of people to fill her shoes. The most important thing we can do is to remember her and be challenged to give and do more for the constitutes we represent while we can."
"Basically, what we need to do is to build more leaders like her and continue the legacy she left for us to do," Dr. Candice Matthews said.
The Texas State Cemetery, where she is buried, is the final resting place of governors, senators, and others who have made the state what it is today.
