AUSTIN, Texas — Family, friends and colleagues of Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson said their final goodbyes on Monday during her burial service at the Texas State Cemetery in Austin.
"Icon," "trailblazer" and "matriarch" are all words that have been used to describe the longtime congresswoman. Those who benefited from her instrumental work or had the honor of witnessing it said their final goodbyes.
"Eddie gave me my first job in her office when she was state rep in Dallas," one speaker said. "She also gave me a grant to go to college."
Johnson died on New Year's Eve at 89 years old from an infection. She served the North Texas community for 50 years – 30 of which were in Congress.
She was the first Black woman ever elected to public office in Dallas, the first nurse ever elected to Congress and the first woman to chair the U.S. House of Representatives' Science, Space and Technology Committee. Johnson was also one of the founders of the Texas Legislative Black Caucus back in 1973.
The current chair of the Texas Black Caucus, State Rep. Ronald Reynolds, spoke about her impact.
"She's lived the kind of life that you see in in books," Reynolds said. "We got a chance to appreciate her while she was living. I think history will judge her very well. When they talk about many icons in Texas … you have to talk about former Congresswoman Bernice Johnson."
Reynolds said Johnson wasn't only a great congresswoman but a devoted family woman who loved fashion.
"She really had a great sense of humor," Reynolds said. "She was a woman that love fashion. She was of style and substance, so a lot of people may not know that she has such a flair. She she loved life. She loved traveling … but she was truly a family person. She was very devoted to her kids, her sister, who still live in her, her son, her grandkids."
State Sen. Royce West spoke at the burial as well.
"She will be remembered," West said. "She will never be forgotten. We'll continue to do that work to make certain that her legacy is fulfilled."