A minister. A congressman. A senator. A voice for the voiceless. And a champion for hungry children. In some ways it is and higher need that georges adult life began in war. When asked about his military service he would always minimize his heroism. But the fact is that if he had done nothing after reaching the age of 25 years old today we would be celebrating the life of an american hero. 35 missions in the be 24. As scott said so well last night there would have been a lot more had the war gone. A lot more than one close call. Shrapnel penetrating the windshield at one point, nearly killing him. A blown wheel, an emergency landing, and on his 30 fifth and final mission, so much fire that when he landed they counted the holes in his fuselage and wings and it number 110. Georges life was not an easy one. He saw more than his share of hardship, loss he fought many battles beyond the ones in the airplane. The hits he sustained in world war ii were easier to see but in truth he was riddled like that inside much of his life. But it was through his incredible sense of humor, his determination to soldier on and set the example for others. As he shrugged over the tragic loss of terror he once observed you never get over it. I am sure of that. You get so you can live with it. That is all. George out of two children taken too soon, terry and steve. And his beloved eleanor. In light of all that theres a certain blessing in knowing he left us as he did, peacefully family and friends around. I dont know about you but i would love the thought that george and elinor and steve are all together now. Throughout his life, as we all know he had a love for mitchell. Mitchell was his home. It is where he studied, to build his library when he chose to return home and continue his Productive Work his last several years. In many ways it is all where it started. George and the longer had four small children, we decided in 1955 to resign as chairman of the History Department and build the democratic party. Their friends agreed there could only be one explanation for this decision. He was out of his mind. [laughter] george insisted there was another explanation. He said he had a desire to work in Public Service and be part of a world of ideas and the field of action. The hallmark of his career was his drive to bridge the gap between the world, turn ideas into action and aspirations into reality. His early years are the stuff of legend and lore. Years crisscrossing the state of south dakota shaking hands copying names on 3 x 5 index cards, judy heritage as the mall. But who could forget the classic story in his autobiography grassroots, you know which one im talking about. He was at the state fair. I stood spawn the wet cold sawed in front of the dismally cold 10, he wrote. There was no floor. I had no literature, no coffee, no elected officials. The gop had a live elephant. [laughter] when democrats stopped by and offered george the use of his donkey george jumped at the chance, drove 14 miles in his chevy. A car, not a pickup, and there was the first faithful multiple disaster. By the end of the day the donkey had sent a hoax through the city window, blood all over the car, relieved himself on a nun, been an a little girl. [laughter] i have never trusted donkeys since, george wrote. They deserve to be called as ses ses. [applause] it wasnt until after i was majority leader that i realize the value of that statement. [laughter and applause] he soon created an organization that enabled him to be at the biggest votegetter in the state, 1956. Becoming the first democrat to be sent to washington from south dakota in 22 years. He immediately became a force to be reckoned with in introducing a farm bill the very first day and over the course of several months passed more legislation than any one of the 44 new members who had come in with him at the same time. His constituents were the people for whom he fought. They were south dakota families barely holding on to their family farms. They were common working people in south dakota and all over the country. Native americans. For people. Hungry people. People others often overlooked. And then it was just as remarkable that in 1962 south dakota send him to washington as the first democrat elected to the senate in 26 years. If George Mcgovern had never entered politics he might still have impacted thousands of people like me. Most likely as a distinguished history professor, but i doubt i would never have been elected to congress. Growing up in south dakota, the idea of getting elected as a democrat seems as likely as martians landing in your yard. It just didnt happen. But because of what george had done, that change. The fact that he won his house and his senate seat expanded the hopes and aspirations of hundreds of wouldbe Democratic Candidates just like me, but even more it is what he did with those seats that affected us the most. What he did. In 1972 i was an Intelligence Officer in the air force in omaha. My day job was analyzing Intelligence Data on the soviet union. I had another volunteer job in the evening, helping run the mcgovern for president primary office in omaha. It was an unusual combination and i think i had the shortest hair cuts of anybody around. [laughter] what attracted me was not only that this man was from my state, what attracted me was his intellect. Is integrity. His passion for the things in which he believes and his courage to speak out, and his enormous decency. I like what someone wrote about him in his Mitchell High School yearbook. For debater he is a nice kid. But for a politician, he would be extraordinary. I well remember my first lesson in Political Leadership from George Mcgovern. I had the opportunity to work in jims campaign and go to washington and jim let me come back here in 1976. Gang to know people. It was 1977 i had not yet announced i was at the state fair. The country was consumed in a raging debate about the panama canal treaties. As we were walking down the fairway a very angry crowd encircled george demanding that he explain his position on those treaties and change it. And threatening that they would work hard to defeat him in the next reelection if he didnt. George stood there and listened quietly. When it was his turn to talk, in a most recent, calm persuasive articulate way he shared with that group why those treaties were not only good for panama but what they meant for us. The crowd dissipated. As we walked back to the democratic booth i remarked that george, i cant help but note the contrast between that angry crowd and what you just did. He said i have learned a long time ago, it is a whole lot better to tell people what you believe from here than to tell them what you think they want to hear. [applause] george set the standard for candor conviction, honesty of. For two years, from 78 to 1980 i had the opportunity to serve in the same delegation with george from south dakota and although he is the most senior and i the most junior he treated me as an equal. I can to begin to tell you the lessons i learned watching this man. Mostly by his example. Lessons i only wish people in washington could better understand today like the fact that you can express your convictions deeply without granting. You can disagree without being disagreeable. He showed me that politics can be an honorable profession. You make sacrifices in politics. Sometimes big sacrifices. But you dont sacrifice your idealism or your conscience. People sometimes talk about mcgovern is some. Some use it as a pejorative. What it means is believing in basic american values. Democracy, justice the dignity of honest work, tolerance. Never hesitating to embrace those values even when they are not popular. Courage combined with common sense. Recognizing our responsibility to face hard questions like the shame of hunger in the world or the reality of illadvised wars in vietnam war iraq. Mcgovern is some the government has certain basic responsibilities like guaranteeing civil rights. Searching for ways to live peacefully in the world. Choosing dialogue over blame, respect over division, hope over fear. What made george a great Public Servant was not only his compassion and integrity but his son, envision. He saw connections others didnt see what the connection between political stability and hungry children. That vision became food for peace. And the Mcgovern DoleInternational Food education program. He also saw things sooner than others. In 1962 he said the most important issue of our time is the establishment of conditions for world peace. Nine months into his first term he gave his search first speech on vietnam. In 1970 he warned about the dependence of the United States on fossil fuels. In 1984 he urged our American Leadership to understand the complexity that challenges and the volatility of circumstances in the middle east. I believe america would be a better place had george become president of the United States. [applause] that doesnt mean his campaign was a failure. 1972 campaign to open the political process that infused a new generation with the belief in what eleanor called the politics of the impossible. That kind of politics that george and the enormous respect across the aisle and transcended partisan lines and along with it enormous, enormous achievement. There are children today, and jim mcgovern mentioned it, children today in the world living and have better lives because of what george and bob dole did together. [applause] on the surface, George Mcgovern and i should be part senator dole said. He is a liberal democrat i am a republican of the conservative stripe. He ran for president when i was chairman of the party. I suspect our voting records are diametrically opposed. Yet in the most important ways, he said, i regard george as a close friend and kindred spirit. He is a decent man who puts principal above expediency. Another man who served with him in the 60s and with a close friend, simply said George Mcgovern is the most decent man in the United States senate. [applause] that was Robert Kennedy who spoke two months before he was killed. It is well known among his friends that george loved to drive. Last night mathew spoke so powerfully and eloquently about his experiences with his grandfather including a drive to mitchell. Jim told me this great story about traveling from florida to south dakota through wisconsin last summer with goerge over nine days. I had my own experiences with george driving over the years in south dakota. I will never forget one night, a beautiful night, george and i were coming back from mitchell having been to some program, driving to su falls, he was driving, we were going around 95 miles an hour and he was looking out the windshield looking at all those great stars and pointing them out one by one how beautiful they were. My eyes were frozen on the road. I said george, look at the darn road metaphorically and actually, george plowed down the road. His eyes focused on something beautiful and something distant. In a speech at Wheaton College in illinois before the 72 election, he told his audience i felt called to the work of serving others. At first i thought my vocation was the ministry and i enrolled in the seminary. After a period of the reflection i felt i should become a teacher yet even i felt there was Something Else for me to do and that led me to politics. He went on in that speech to say we know the kingdom of god will not come from a party platform. We also know, he said, someone is hungry we give him food. If someone is fierce the we give him drink. If someone is a stranger we take him in. If he is naked, we close him. If he is sick, we take care of him. If he is in prison, we visit him. That encapsulates simply and powerfully the story of George Mcgoverns years on this earth. He and i had many favorite poets and writers. One of our favorite was yates. We both love one of yatess lines. Think of where my glory begins and ends. Mike lowry is that i have such friends. Our glory, our glory is that we had a friend named George Mcgovern. [applause] i am Matt Mcgovern and i will read from the gospel of matthew. When the son of man comes in his glory and though the angels with him, he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheet from the goat and he will put the sheet that his right hand and the goats that the left. And the king will say to those at his right hand come and inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, for i was hungry and you gave me food i was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, i was a stranger and you welcomed me, i was naked and you gave me clothing, i was sick and you took care of me. I was in prison and you visited me. The righteous will answer him lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food or thirsty and gave you something to drink, and when was it we saw you a stranger and welcomed you or naked and gave you clothing, and when was it we saw you sick or in prison and visited you and the king will answer them truly i tell you just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of the family, you did it to me. And those that his left hand you that are a curse, depart from me to the eternal fire. Prepare for the devil and his angels for i was hungry and you gave me no food, i was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, i was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me. They also will answer when was it that we saw you hungry or first the or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not take care of view . He will answer them truly i tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these you did not do it to me and these will go away to eternal punishment but the righteous to eternal life. [applause] [applause] i am Mary Mclaughlin georges granddaughter and this is a reading from the gospel according to luke. Jesus, filled with the power of the spirit returned to galilee and a report about him spread through the surrounding country. He began to teach in our synagogues and was praised by everyone. When he came to nazareth he went to the synagogue on the sabbath day as was his custom. He stood up to read. The scroll of the prophet isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found a place where it was written the spirit of the lord is upon me because he has anointed me to bring good news to the 4. He sent me to proclaim relief to the captive and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed and free, to proclaim the year of the lords favor and he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of all the synagogue were fixed on him and he began to say to them today this scripture is fulfilled in your yearning all spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said is not this josephs son . He said to them doubt was you will quote to me this proverb. Dr. Cure yourself and you will say do you hear in your home town the things we have heard you did . And he said truly i tell you, no profit is accepted in a profits home town but the truth is there are many widows in israel at the time of eli show when the heavens were shut for three years and six months and there was severe famine over the land yet the live show was sent to none of them except a widow at fairfax. There were many lepers in israel at the time of the profit elijah and none of them was cleansed except the syrian. When they heard this all in the synagogue were filled with rage. They got up and drove out of the town and led him to the hill on which their town was built so they might throw him off the cliff. In the midst of them went on his way. I greet you in the name of the risen christ, the same christ who promised i will come again and take you to myself so that where i am there you may be also. I am bruce so, bishop of the minnesota area of the United Methodist church and it is my honor to participate in this service and to have been asked by the family to preach the gospel. I think george would have wanted the last word of this marvelous celebration of his life to be the preaching of the gospel. S. D. Lost one of its beloved son is of the prairie. Our nation has lost one of its true heroes and patriots and an unwavering voice for peace, justice, compassion, and decency. The World Community have lost the champion and friend of the poor and hungry. People of faith have lost a mature disciple of the gospel jesus christ and follower of the methodist way of life. To do no harm, to do good and to stay in love with god. The mcgovern family has lost a beloved father, grandfather great grandfather, uncle cousin and in law. We extend to you our deepest pledge to hold you in our prayers as you move through this season of sorrow. You have embraced and in the lord with remarkable dignity and charity a public season of grief. So thank you again for sharing george with a generation that also grieves with you. On behalf of a profoundly grateful United Methodist church who proudly claims George Stanley mcgovern as a son and example of our heritage of personal wholeness and social holiness i thank each of you for coming today to celebrate and monitor senator if senator mcgoverns life and witness. Share the mcgovern familys grief. I thank you for coming to say goodbye to a dear friend, a political colleague, trusted men for [no audio] geography and culture of the area formed him as it has many of us, to embrace the common person and tirelessly worked for the common good. George mcgovern was also a prairie profit. He was a home town profit. In the tradition of the judeochristian profits he called and inspired an entire generation including me to do justice, to love mercy and walk humbly with our god. The focus the worlds attention on the plank of the hungry, he warred against evil and fought for peace. He called us to repents a misguided, wasteful and selfish decision and turn back to seeking an speaking the truth. George m