*County commissioner Steve Mulroy was one of several prominent politicians on display this weekend. Here Mulroy (with commission colleague James Harvey) spoke at a Meet & Greet affair of the Shelby County Democrats at the Hattiloo Theater downtown. The affair drew candidates for governor, Congress, and a variety of local positiions.
*Other events of the weekend included a changing of the guard at the Tennessee Bar Association, where such eminent out-of-office polical figures as Harold Ford Jr. and Howard Baker made appearances; and Sidney Chism‘s annual picnic gathering.
Former congressman Ford, a Democrat, and former U.S. senator Baker, a Republican, discussed a wide range of subjects and concurred on several — including the value of current economic stimulus programs and the need for more bipartisan cooperation.
(More images and details to come from these and other events)
*On the sadder side, the great Josie Burson was laid to rest on Friday afternoon at Baron Hirsch Cemetery. Burson, who died Thursday at 93, was the widow of the late Leo Burson and mother of Charles Burson, former chief of staff for Vice President Al Gore and former state Attorney General. A distinguished figure in her own right, she did a stint as state commissioner of Employment Security and was honored with a variety of awards for her community service.
9th District congressman Steve Cohen, a family friend, remembered her this way: “Mrs. Burson was a wonderul lady who did for everybody what she could. She cared about the whole Memphis community and brought people together. She and her husband Leo were leaders for a long time, and, after he passed, she carried on, working for seniors. They were involved so much in the whole community. We’re proud of their son Charles, who followed in their footsteps and brought great honor to the famiiy name and to the city of Memphis.”
