Tributes have pouring in from people who knew, worked with and admired Ohio’s John Glenn – the first American to orbit the earth, the oldest person ever to fly in space and Ohio's only four term US Senator.
Longtime Democratic strategist Dale Butland was Senator Glenn’s press secretary and chief of staff.
He says Glenn’s commitment to his country through the military and the space program goes back to a time when Americans believed in their institutions and in the government to do big things.
“I think a lot of that is gone now, and I’m not sure that we’ll ever get to the point where we can all cheer for the same national hero anymore because we’re so divided. But I think John stands as a giant.”
Specific details about Glenn’s memorial are still being put together, but he will lie in state at the Statehouse next week, and a public event is being planned at Mershon Auditorium on the Ohio State campus.
