[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 11]
[Senate]
[Pages 15969-15970]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


                       REMEMBERING HAROLD CASKEY

 Mrs. McCASKILL. Mr. President, I wish to honor Harold Caskey, 
a former Missouri State senator of Butler in Bates County, MO, with 
whom I had the great pleasure of serving in the Missouri General 
Assembly. Harold was one of Missouri's most influential legislators. 
Harold was known by many as ``the old lion''--a reference to his 
doggedness in debating. A dedicated public servant, Harold will be 
remembered for his love of family, his community in western and west 
central Missouri, and the State. Harold was blind, but he never let 
this prevent him from succeeding. Harold was a whip smart, strategic, 
loyal and hard-working man who conquered adversity. The State of 
Missouri has lost a special man, and he will be greatly missed and 
never duplicated.
  Harold was born in Hume, MO, in 1938. During childhood, Harold became 
legally blind due to a genetic condition, but this did not prevent him 
from being a stellar student and becoming his high school's senior 
class valedictorian. He attended Central Missouri State University at 
Warrensburg, now the University of Central Missouri, where he graduated 
magna cum laude with dual majors in psychology and sociology. He then 
earned his law degree at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he 
was elected to the Order of the Coif.
  After earning his law degree, Harold started practicing law in the 
office of former Missouri State Senator William Cason in Clinton. In 
1965, Harold started his own law practice in Butler. He was elected 
prosecutor for Bates County in 1967 and served three terms, ending in 
1973. Harold continued his public service by serving as the city 
attorney for the communities of Butler and Rich Hill from 1973 to 1976. 
Harold was also an assistant professor in law enforcement and business 
education at Northeast Missouri State University, now Truman State 
University, in Kirksville.
  Harold began his tenure in the Missouri Senate after winning election 
in 1976 and served for 28 years before retiring in 2004 due to newly 
enacted term limits. He was chairman of the Senate Civil and Criminal 
Jurisprudence Committee and the Senate Ethics Committee and vice 
chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In the Missouri Senate, he 
was a tireless advocate for rural public education and sponsored 
influential public school laws, such as the 1993 Outstanding Schools 
Act, which significantly increased state public school funding and 
mandated higher school standards. As a member of the Missouri 
Commission on Performance, Harold advised the State Department of 
Elementary and Secondary Education on education reform and school 
finance. Harold had great influence over Missouri's criminal justice 
laws by increasing sentences for the most violent and, at the end of 
his term, sponsoring a sentencing reform bill that reduced some 
sentences for less serious offenders. He

[[Page 15970]]

was also a passionate leader and advocate for the visually impaired and 
disabled. Harold served as vice chairman of the Missouri State Capitol 
Commission until his passing.
  Harold received numerous honors for his legislative accomplishments, 
including recognitions from the Missouri Planning Council for 
Developmental Disabilities, the Public Telecommunications Association 
of Missouri, the Missouri Deputy Sheriffs Association, the Judicial 
Conference of Missouri, the Missouri Association of Counties, the 
Missouri Association of Pharmacists, the Missouri Association of 
Prosecuting Attorneys, the Missouri Cable Television Association, the 
Missouri Crime Commission, the Missouri Police Chiefs' Association, the 
American Business Women's Association, and the Cooperating School 
Districts of Suburban Kansas City.
  Outside his work as an elected official, Harold's dedication to his 
community was passionate and unselfish as he served in countless ways, 
including as a member of the Rotary Club of Butler, the Missouri Bar 
Association, the Crescent Hill Masonic Lodge No. 368 A.F. and A.M., the 
Scottish Rite of Free Masonry in the Valley of Orient in Kansas City, 
MO, and the Ararat Shrine. He was also an honorary fellow of the Harry 
S. Truman Library Institute for National and International Affairs, a 
member of the Bates County Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees, and a 
member of Butler First Baptist Church.
  Harold is survived by his wife, Kay; son, Kyle; sister, Velma Elaine 
May; and brothers, Robert, Leon, and Ray Lee. I witnessed firsthand his 
strong leadership and tenacious commitment to issues he cared about. I 
am grateful for the wisdom, knowledge, and lessons Harold shared with 
me. He made me a better legislator and public servant. While one might 
have seen Harold as intimidating or stern, he was secretly a sweet 
softie--kind and gentle.
  I am deeply saddened by his passing and join his family and friends 
in reflecting on his many life accomplishments. Harold touched the 
lives of many and will be remembered as an invaluable public servant to 
the State of Missouri and an inspiration to all.
  I ask that the Senate join me in honoring Harold Caskey.

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