Other remembrances
Erskine Bowles | Harry C. Martin | Susan Tifft
White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles remembers Sanford
Letter to the Editor of the Duke Chronicle 4/22/98
Terry Sanford was my childhood hero. Growing up, I would hear my father tell wonderful tales about his Chapel Hill days with Terry Sanford: How they were best friends, two peas in a pod and full of the same big dreams for our state.
I finally met my father's legendary college buddy when I was a teenager, during his first campaign for governor. Once, in the midst of that campaign, I offered candidate Sanford some advice. I assumed he would forget it quickly, given that it came from a 15-year-old. But he didn't.
After he was elected, he sent me a set of cufflinks with a personal note thanking me for my advice. I have kept that note to this day -- and I wear those cufflinks at least once week, to remind me of my hero and how he changed the world through public service.
Terry Sanford made his dreams -- and the dreams of so many North Carolinians who wanted to make our state a better place for all our people to live, work and raise families -- come true. He did so because he was never afraid of taking the tough stands he needed to take to move our state forward. At the height of the civil rights movement, when demonstrations and racial violence were rocking communities across our state, Terry Sanford, a white southern governor, called for an end to job discrimination against African-Americans. In his heart, he knew it was the right thing to do. I will never forget the admiration I felt when I heard that statement.
And I took inspiration from his unwavering commitment to expanding opportunity to all. As governor, and later as president of the University, Terry Sanford helped transform North Carolina into a national leader in education and scientific research. He built a model community college and university system that made it possible for thousands of North Carolinians to achieve their dreams of higher education. And he worked hard to attract more cutting-edge industries to our state. In so many ways, the thousands of high-wage jobs that are now available to North Carolinians are here because of Terry Sanford's vision.
Over the years, I often looked to Gov. Sanford for personal and professional guidance. I knew I could always count on his wise and considered advice-though he could never talk me into running for public office. A few years ago, he helped convince me to come back to Washington to serve as the president's chief of staff. The president and many of my colleagues at the White House also relied on Terry for advice, especially when it came to education. And most recently, he helped guide our efforts in launching the president's Race Initiative.
I will always be grateful for having known and worked with Terry Sanford -- a man who left our state a better place than when he found it. He was my friend, mentor and hero. I will miss him sorely.
Harry C. Martin, former Justice of North Carolina Supreme Court and Chief Circuit Mediator for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth District.
Terry Sanford was a person with a multihued personality: Courage – A World War II combat paratrooper (he was scared the whole time, but he did it), as governor he passed the sales tax on food to save our schools.
Leadership -- Governor, president of Duke University, founder of formal education for the performing arts in North Carolina, counsel to presidents and precinct workers, one of Kennedy's "Dirty Dozen" from North Carolina at the 1960 Democratic National Convention.
Intellectual-author -- forever student, teacher, thinker.
Loyal -- devoted to family, friends, the ideals and institutions he cherishes, his daily diet is to do something for others.
But perhaps Terry's strongest trait is that he is an uncommon man with a common touch, edged by humor. During one of his presidential campaigns -- the first, I believe -- when asked by reporters how he viewed himself on the political spectrum, he wrinkled his brow and with a hint of a smile, replied, "Well, I'm a North Carolina Regular."
Illustrations of this quality are legion: While Terry was governor, he was relaxing with some friends at a trout lake in the mountains. Among the group was a state highway patrolman, and Terry delighted in rousing everyone at 5:30 in the morning with the wail of the siren on the trooper's car. Of course, all the political wags (of maturity) recall that when the BB&T sign went up in Raleigh it was the "Bert, Bennett and Terry" sign. (For readers not of maturity, Bert Bennett was Terry's 1960 campaign manager.) And when questioned about his age during the 1986 senatorial campaign, Terry responded, "My mother told me that I was old enough to run for the U.S. Senate."
Perhaps my favorite example concerns the birth of my son, Matthew (who married The Chronicle's production manager). Terry and I have been friends since September 1939 when we met on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Matthew was born Sept. 10, 1960, and although he was mired in the closing phase of his gubernatorial race, Terry extended that common touch with a telegram: "Congratulations -- Thank God for another North Carolina Democrat." And thank God for Terry Sanford.
Susan Tifft, Trinity '73, professor of the practice of public policy studies at Duke.
The year after I graduated from the University, I worked for Joel Fleishman at what was then called the Institute for Policy Sciences and Public Affairs -- now the Sanford Institute -- and served as a student trustee at the same time.
Around Christmas that year, I wanted to speak to Terry about a trustee-related issue, but I had a hard time getting an appointment. His secretary, "Ms. Mims," seemed unusually protective of his time. Finally, in exasperation, I told her I just wanted a few minutes so I could give the president a Christmas present. That did the trick.
On the morning of my appointment, I showed up with a small bag, got myself ushered into Terry's office and sat down. From the bag, I ceremoniously brought forth two cigars wrapped in Christmas paper, a Thermos of eggnog laced with rum and two glasses. It was silly, juvenile thing to do, I suppose, but Terry took it in the spirit in which it was intended.
After I had poured him a drink, he raised his eggnog in a toast: "It's been a great year having you as my boss," he said, invoking my role as a trustee.
"It's been a great year having you as my boss," I returned, invoking my other role as a University employee at the institute.
We sat and sipped and talked for about 30 or 40 minutes, until an agitated Ms. Mims burst in and warned Terry that the office Christmas party was about to start without him.
Terry's humor and his ability to make each person feel special are two of the most memorable things about him. Surely there must have been times when he felt rushed, anxious, afraid, worried or upset, but he never showed it. At least not in my presence. Instead, he charmed us all with his lovely, light touch, and he made us feel that participation in public life, whether on a student level within Duke's walls or in the wider world, was not merely a duty or a responsibility but a joy and a delight.
