Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

U.S. Senator Jack Reed, D - R.I., delivered a eulogy during the funeral of the late former Sen. Claiborne Pell at Trinity Church in Newport this morning. Providence Journal photo / Freida Squires

NEWPORT, RI -- Sen. Jack Reed followed Vice President-elect Joe Biden in delivering an eulogy at the funeral services of Rhode Island's late Sen. Claiborne Pell, thanking the statesman and his family for their service.

"Claiborne Pell dedicated his life as selfless service to Rhode Island and to the nation," Reed said, crediting the man Reed called the "commanding political presence" in his youth.

In his 36 years representing Rhode Island in the U.S. Senate, Reed said, "Claiborne Pell represented the ideal of what a public servant should be."

Pell, he said, was a "visionary thinker," a man who mixed wisdom and compassion, who mastered many things -- but small talk -- and believed in, and promoted, bipartisanship.

"Your presence here," Reed said, addressing the U.S. senators -- Democrats and Republicans -- in attendance, "speaks volumes about the respect and esteem that Claiborne Pell earned."

 Tags  Claiborne Pell Newport R.I.

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