Kari called me on Sunday night as their family followed the ambulance to the hospital after Dirk's father Jim had suffered a massive stroke during their traditional Sunday family dinner. He died the following afternoon.
Jim was a prominent public figure in business, community service, and both local and statewide politics, and so this grief has both the sadness of my friends' pain and also a sense of loss across Alaska. My impressions of this man were formed years ago - many years before I knew Kari and for that matter, many years before she was part of the Campbell family too. It's no secret that I live in daily embarrassment of today's Republican politics in Alaska, except for a few notable exceptions in our state legislature. But in the 80's and 90's Alaska had a crop of Republican leaders in whom even this left-leaner felt a tremendous confidence, and Jim Campbell was one of those fine people.
He was successful but worked hard for his success. He was compassionate, responsive, practical, visionary. He was intelligent and straightforward. He was refreshingly plain spoken.
All I want in my leaders is ultimately that they possess integrity. He had it, and we all had a little more of it because he was here.
---
ANCHORAGE DAILY NEWS
January 4, 2006
Businessman's history was one of turning failures into success
Former gubernatorial candidate dies at 73
By LISA DEMER
Jim Campbell, a businessman who turned Spenard Builders Supply into a dozen-store success before he became one of the state's most prominent Republicans, died Monday. He was 73.
Campbell died at Providence Alaska Medical Center after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage at the Anchorage home of his son, Dirk, at a family gathering the day before, said his wife, Kelly. He had been living temporarily in an assisted-living home as he recovered from surgery to repair a dislocated artificial hip, she said.
In 1994, Campbell came within 536 votes of being governor.
You can read the full story online at:
http://www.adn.com/news/alaska/story/7332362p-7244486c.html
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