In Memoriam: Representative Bob Bethell

Sad news came to us as we heard of the car accident that claimed the life of Representative Bob Bethell.

We all got to know Bob who came to Topeka as a reformer with a fixed perspective on DD issues. His perspective was that the system was in desperate need of reformation, and many things he suggested were strongly opposed and defeated by your advocacy.  It was a several years long struggle to work through those issues. Then over time he, and we,  came to know one another better, and his regard for your work grew each year. He became a strong supporter of your work, and a strong believer in the essential strength and integrity of the DD system. Wounds do heal in the political arena, and Bob became one of our strongest supporters.

He stood up for our work on many occasions, and that was true regardless of the prevailing politics of the day.

In his last few years in office, Bob became known as a RINO (Republican in Name Only), and wore the target without embarrassment or fear. He knew two things, first that he was a Republican in the strongest and most principled ways that he embraced his party’s traditions. And, second, he knew that being a Republican didn’t mean he had to put his principles and his independent thoughts on the shelf, and he wasn’t quiet about it, he spoke out on many issues which put him at odds with some within his own party.

We will always appreciate his work in the last few sessions, to bring light to our issues, to work with legislators on both sides of the aisle, to collaborate with us and seek our  input, and generally, we will appreciate the ways in which he and you and we grew to work in common cause on behalf of disability supports and services in Kansas.

Keep Bob’s family in your prayers.

Tom Laing,

Executive Director, InterHab

LEFT TO RIGHT: Representatives Jerry Henry, Barbara Ballard and Bob Bethell gather outside the Governor's office for the signing of
SB 210; the provider assessment bill passed in 2011.