Ray Stephanson, Everett’s current mayor, met Jackson in 1981 while running for City Council. He did what he thought was right and he did it with courage,” said Ed Hansen, a legislative aide to Jackson in the mid-60s who would later serve as mayor of Everett. “The things he did, he didn’t do for publicity or attention. It is kept alive by his widow, his family and former employees who went into public service, and by proteges who went on to advise presidents. “Now, it gives you a sense of pride to this high school.It is measured by his pioneering legislation protecting the environment and creating wilderness areas, and an unbending anti-communism, credited for helping end the Cold War. “I didn’t know anything about him,” he said. He said he’s been studying the Cold War in his history class and what he heard about Jackson’s stand against the Soviet Union gave him a better context for that period. Sam Hickman, also a junior, nodded in agreement.
“It gives you a connection that wasn’t there before.” I’ve learned he had a huge impact on the entire United States,” junior Rahma Keene said afterward. “Before, all I knew was his name was Scoop. Jackson High School in Mill Creek, attending the centennial filled in a lot of blanks about the school’s namesake. Will credited Jackson with helping the country “keep its nerve” in the long fight against the spread of totalitarianism.įor him, the monuments to Jackson “are what you don’t see” such as the Soviet Union and the Iron Curtain.įor students of Henry M. McCain called Jackson a “towering figure in the history of American politics” and a model of what a statesman should be.
John McCain, R-Ariz., who served with Jackson, and journalist George Will, who covered the senator’s career and 1976 presidential campaign, sent separate video messages. Nationally known political figures took part Thursday as well. “It was quite an experience,” Boreson said. He said Jackson asked him to be his “opening man,” which, he learned, meant warming up the audience before the candidate took the stage. “It’s as much a celebration of Scoop’s birthday as it is a celebration of this community.”Īt the centennial, Scandinavian accordionist Stan Boreson, an icon himself, told of a friendship that blossomed on the presidential campaign trail in 1972. “This community made all the difference to him,” said his son, Peter. There was a private event at the Everett Naval Station followed by a public gathering at Everett Community College and then the centennial celebration where a recurring theme was how much Jackson loved his hometown. No doubt 100 years from now Scoop Jackson’s legacy will be remembered.” “For 71 years on this planet Scoop touched so many lives. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., said at the centennial. “It is nearly impossible to capture all that he’s done,” U.S. Their mother, Helen Jackson, who has been battling Alzheimer’s disease, did not attend the events. After a dozen years there, he captured a seat in the Senate and was serving his sixth term at the time of his death in 1983.Īt three events Thursday, Laurence and her brother, Peter Jackson, along with family friends and a few politicians took the measure of a man who rose to become one of the most influential members of Congress and recognized senators around the globe. In 1940, at age 28, he won a seat in the U.S.
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