It's always a shock to hear that someone has died, especially when it's so sudden. It took me a bit to comprehend that my colleague, Minority Leader Hugh McKean is gone.

Minority Leader McKean and I were on opposite sides of the aisle politically, but he was always a thoughtful, kind, and respectful person. He was always very busy so we didn't always get a lot of time to converse about things, but when we did, we always geeked out on science stuff, talked about his family, and found a lot of ways to commiserate on things outside of our differences. 



He put honesty and his values front and center, and advocated for them passionately and respectfully. He was upbeat, always smiling, and found ways of making others smile. Colorado will be without a true statesman who demonstrated what good civil politics should be.

I'm going to miss him. I know that he left very big shoes to fill. I hope that whoever takes his leadership role will follow the legacy of statesmanship that he created.