Late former Missouri State Sen. Mary Groves Bland will be laid to rest on Saturday. Funeral services will be at St. James United Methodist Church in Kansas City.
Former Missouri Gov. Bob Holden is scheduled to speak at the funeral. Gov. Jay Nixon has also ordered flags in Jackson County to be half-staff as a tribute to Bland.
“Mary Groves Bland was a tireless public servant and an unwavering champion for social justice throughout her life, and I was honored to know and work with her,” Nixon said in a news release. “My thoughts and prayers, as well as those of the First Lady, are with her friends and family, especially her four children, in mourning her passing.”
The former Missouri state senator's children believe their mom's legacy will inspire a new generation of public servants.
Bland served 24 years in the Missouri legislature. She was elected as a Missouri state representative in 1980. In 1998 she became a Missouri state senator. She died on Feb. 19, 2016, from complications from Alzheimer's. Bland was also the first African-American woman who served as president of Freedom Inc, in Kansas City. She was 80 years old.
Instead of flowers, the family is asking people to make a donation to the Niles Home for Children.
Bland's children said their mom was a devoted public servant and cared about the common man.
"She didn't like to be called a politician; she like to be called a servant of the people," said Pam Bland-Manlove, Bland's daughter.
Bland's son, Craig, served with his mother in the Missouri Legislature. He remembered his mother's famous saying: "'If I can help just one.' Her legacy has always been about other people."
Mary Bland was a champion for children's causes, empowering women and families, fair treatment of prisoners and always encouraging people to vote.
Bland's children hope their mothers selfless public service will inspire a new generation of public servants.
-----
Cynthia Newsome can be reached at cynthia.newsome@kshb.com.
