Special presentations were made Monday morning in the Utah House’s opening ceremonies to the family of the late Speaker Becky Lockhart.
Lockhart died two Saturdays ago from an aggressive brain disease. She retired from the House, and her speakership, the end of December, and was relatively healthy up until the final several weeks of her life.
Present in the House Chambers were Lockhart’s husband, Stan, a former chair of the Utah Republican Party, and her two adult daughters.
House members passed a resolution, HR3, detailing her legislative achievements and the House’s appreciation of the 16 years – the last four as speaker – of her service.
New House Speaker Greg Hughes, R-Draper, said because so many of the 75 House members are relatively new, the only speaker they have known was Lockhart.
The House also gave the Lockhart family a special book, with pictures of Lockhart as speaker with remembrances written in of current House members.
In addition the family was given a painting by David Koch, who painted the new large murals in the House Chamber.
The Koch picture is of the sun setting on the Capitol Building itself.
Finally, each House speaker has his or her picture painted/photographed and it becomes the official portrait that hangs in House hallways.
The Lockharts were given Speaker Lockhart’s official picture. The House has other large pictures of Lockhart, one of which will become the official portrait of Utah’s first female speaker of the House.
