A Senate memorial service

Gov. Sonny Perdue, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, several lawmakers and much of the State Capitol staffed filled the Senate chamber this afternoon in a memorial service for longtime legislatislative assistant Leah Tatum-Dick, 57, who was killed in an auto accident near Augusta. Her husband, Bill Dick, also died.

Leah Tatum-Dick (center) with her lemon meringue cake made for a 2008 event at the Capitol. Elissa Eubanks/AJC.

It was a somber affair tinged with humor. A memorial display at the front of the chamber included portraits, flowers, and one of the flamboyant high-heels Tatum-Dick preferred.

She served as an assistant for a number of senators over nine years. “I knew she was special because of how good she made Sen. Joey Brush look,” said the governor, himself a former senator.

“She really did make Joey Brush look really, really good,” Cagle said.

Brush, who no longer serves in the Senate, was on hand to provide some of the music — a medley of gospel songs.

Tatum-Dick and her husband were killed on Saturday. Robert Rowell, a 68-year-old delivery man, died in the same accident on I-20. This account in the Augusta Chronicle is the most detailed I’ve been able to find, but some of you may be able to provide other links.

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