I first saw Bob Dole as a child in 1960 when he was walking down Santa Fe Avenue in Salina handing out “Dole” pineapple juice. He was in his first congressional campaign, a race he won handily, to represent what was then the state’s sixth congressional district.
During the 1970s, while working for two Kansas attorneys general and traveling the state, our travels often intersected at the same events. Dole was always cordial and even helpful with his advice. Once he told Attorney General Vern Miller that when attending dinners and banquets, it was wise to walk into the kitchen to shake hands and thank the people preparing the food as they were the ones doing the work and everybody else was out front enjoying themselves.
Often Dole would tell state officials to let him know if he could be of assistance. When dealing with the federal government, these two attorneys general always sought Dole’s help over any other member of Kansas’ legislative delegation. Dole’s constituent service ranks as the best of the best. 
Who wouldn’t appreciate Dole’s wit, which was rare even in those distant times and even more so today. While lobbying a bill in Congress, my Southwestern Bell boss and I called on him in his law office in 1998, two years after he lost a campaign for the presidency. We sought Dole’s advice on how to deal with a southern senator who couldn’t seem to agree with a piece of legislation we were pushing. Dole’s response was “if this particular lawmaker could regulate breathing, he would do so and then tax it at the rate of a penny per breath.” This was not the answer we hoped to hear, but would later discover was totally accurate.
In 1998, Dole accepted a longstanding invitation to speak to the Dillon Lecture Series at Hutchinson Community College. Never one to waste time and always wanting to make the most of any day, he first stopped in Halstead to reconnect with his old friend Larry Williams, president of the Halstead Bank.
As he took center stage, he joked that it was a little hard to understand why his wife Elizabeth had participated in the series years earlier, making him wonder if he might have been an after-thought. Everyone laughed knowing that the reason for his delayed acceptance was the result of his busy schedule.
After leaving politics, Dole penned a book entitled “Great Political Wit—Laughing (Almost) all the way to the White House.” The book is classic Dole with plenty of jabs at himself along with his contemporaries he knew during the second half of the 20th century.
In 2006, Kansas historian Virgil Dean edited a book entitled “John Brown to Bob Dole,” about the 26 greatest movers and shakers in Kansas history. Included in the list was President Dwight D. Eisenhower, author William Allen White and 1936 presidential candidate Alf Landon. To no one’s surprise Bob Dole made the list going away.
Rest in peace, Bob Dole, and thanks for the memories.
Richard Shank is a retired AT&T manager, is employed in the health care industry and has farming interests in Saline County. Email him at [email protected].
