Dear Editor,
A champion of criminal justice reform, a strong advocate for equality, and the type of man who would stop and talk genuinely to a 14-year-old girl in a cow costume, Sen. Dick Sears was always there for me and other youth advocates. When a couple of youths and I recently visited the Statehouse, he personally brought us into the Judiciary Committee Room and talked to us about criminal justice and racial justice.
But it goes further back than that: Sen. Sears made an appearance at the memorial service of Thierry Huega, a homeless man who died sleeping outside before Covid-19 raged. I didn’t know him at the time, but when he and Sen. Brian Campion walked in, someone whispered to me who they were, and I went up (shyly) to talk to them. Sen. Sears was kind and loving, and it meant so much to me — and Thierry’s family — that he came to the service.
Sen. Sears openly met with me when I wanted to help him with a bill dealing with criminal justice reform and record sealing. He connected with activists, championed the bill and educated those around him regardless of their age. He was a politician who worked intergenerationally in an authentic way.
Through the years, Sen. Sears has gotten to know me personally: my struggles with health, my mistakes and my successes. No matter what embarrassing thing I did as a teenager, he was there for me. Even when that meant he had to stand on Main Street in Bennington talking to a girl with a N95 mask in a cow costume. Granted, it was Halloween, but still — it meant a lot to me.
I am honored to have known Sen. Sears. He was a legislator like no other. Rest in peace.
Addie Lentzner
Bennington
Read the story on VTDigger here: Addie Lentzner: I am honored to have known Sen. Dick Sears.