Indianapolis – Governor Mike Pence’s remarks, as prepared for delivery, for this evening’s memorial tribute of Father Theodore Hesburgh can be found below.
Memorial Tribute of Father Hesburgh
Governor Mike Pence
Remarks as Prepared for Delivery
To Jim Hesburgh, his wife Mary, and the rest of the Hesburgh family, to the brothers of the Congregation of Holy Cross, Father Jenkins and the University of Notre Dame family, President and Mrs. Carter, your eminence Cardinal McCarrick, and all those gathered both in body and spirit this evening. I offer my deepest condolences on behalf of the people of Indiana for the loss of the Reverend Theodore M. Hesburgh.
Father Hesburgh was not only one of the longest-serving presidents of our nation’s universities; he was a giant on the global stage, a champion of human rights, and a voice for the downtrodden. He held 16 presidential appointments, was a charter member of the Commission on Civil Rights, and served four popes. Father Hesburgh’s career in public service earned him the Congressional Gold Medal, the Medal of Freedom, and our state’s highest honor—the Indiana Sachem Award. His was a life that epitomized faith, vision, and service.
And yet, even as he worked around the world on behalf of presidents and popes, Father Hesburgh always came home to Indiana, to South Bend, and to his beloved Notre Dame. For Father Hesburgh, it truly was “God, Country, Notre Dame.â€
This community and our state held an unequivocally special place in Father Hesburgh’s heart, and Hoosiers are proud to call him one of our own.
We have all been inspired by his example of faith, by his voice for the Church, and by his leadership on matters of human and civil rights, which have shaped our world today.
Upon the death of Abner, King David spoke words to his people: “Do you not know that a prince, a great man, has fallen today in Israel?â€
All of Indiana mourns and every community marks the passing of a great man.
The people of Indiana will always remember the life, the work, and the character of Father Theodore Hesburgh. May his example ever inspire and may he rest in peace.
