Roy Herron, a longtime Tennessee state lawmaker and former chairperson of the state Democratic Party, died Sunday from accidents sustained in a jet ski accident. He was 69.

Herron died at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, in response to an announcement from his household. He had been hospitalized since a July 1 collision with one other jet ski on Kentucky Lake, through which he suffered inner bleeding and intensive accidents to his arm and pelvis, in response to his household’s Caring Bridge web site.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency was investigating the collision, the main points of which weren't instantly out there.

“Roy loved his family with all his might,” Herron’s spouse, Rev. Nancy Carol Miller-Herron, stated. “He passed doing what he loved most - spending time with our sons and their friends in the Tennessee outdoors where his spirit was always most free.”

Herron, an legal professional from Dresden, Tennessee, served a mixed 26 years within the state’s House and Senate, the place he turned ground chief and caucus chair for the Democrats. He by no means missed a day of session, apart from when his youngest son was born, in response to his web site. He chaired the state Democratic Party from 2013 to 2015.

A graduate of the University of Tennessee at Martin, Herron was additionally one of many first college students to earn joint levels in divinity and regulation from Vanderbilt University. An ordained Methodist minister, Herron additionally authored three books, together with one titled, “God and Politics: How Can a Christian Be in Politics?”

Funeral providers had been deliberate for Saturday at First United Methodist Church in Martin.

Condolences poured in on Sunday. On Twitter, former Vice President Al Gore known as his fellow Tennessee Democrat “a dear friend and one of Tennessee’s most devoted citizens.” Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen known as Herron “bright, diligent, and honest. A politician destined for greatness.” Republican Rep. David Kustoff stated Herron ”devoted his life to serving West Tennessee, and your entire Volunteer State.”

Tennessee House Republican Caucus Chairman Jeremy Faison stated on Twitter he was “the kind of guy that you couldn’t help but like.”

Joe Hill, a longtime Tennessee Democratic political operative who labored with Herron on a number of campaigns, stated he “brought a zeal for making health care more accessible to disadvantaged Tennesseans” when he was elected to the state House. Hill stated he additionally introduced that dedication to “education, victims’ rights, environmental quality and so many other things that affect average people.”

“His legacy of advocating for ‘the least among us’ will represent the gold standard of service for Democrats and Republicans in Tennessee’s future,” Hill instructed The Associated Press on Sunday.

That nature utilized to Herron‘s friendships as well, Hill said. He recalled how Herron drove 140 miles (225 kilometers) to be with him and his family in Memphis, after one of Hill’s kids was concerned in a automobile crash.

“We left home in such a hurry and didn’t bring extra clothes,” Hill stated. “My wife, Susan, was freezing in the cold hospital waiting room, and Roy gave her his shirt so she could be warm. That’s the kind of genuine human being he was.”

In 2010, after briefly operating for governor, Herron turned the Democratic nominee in Tennessee’s eighth Congressional District, when then-Rep. John Tanner introduced his retirement, after greater than 20 years within the seat. Herron finally misplaced the overall election to Republican Stephen Fincher.

“I was hoping when I retired, that he would win the seat,” Tanner instructed the AP on Sunday.

After a twister devastated his hometown of Dresden simply earlier than Christmas in 2021, Herron marshaled a fundraising effort, amassing greater than $100,000 to assist restoration efforts.

“It’s an overused term - that he was a dedicated public servant - but that really was Roy,” Tanner stated. “He worked tirelessly for causes that he took up, and he had a good heart.”

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