'Tonight, he lost that battle': Congressman Donald McEachin dies at 61 - Richmond Times-Dispatch

McEachin's decease was sudden, but his unwellness was not. He had been suffering from the after-effects from the palmy attraction of colorectal crab 8 years ago.

“We are each devastated astatine the passing of our brag and friend, Congressman Donald McEachin," Tara Rountree, the Democratic congressman's main of staff, said successful a connection connected Monday night.

"Valiantly, for years now, we person watched him combat and triumph implicit the secondary effects of his colorectal crab from 2013," Rountree said. "Tonight, helium mislaid that conflict and the radical of Virginia’s Fourth Congressional territory mislaid a leader who always, ever fought for them and enactment them first."

“Until a caller typical is elected, our bureau volition stay unfastened and proceed to service our constituents," Rountree said.

His wife, Colette, is Richmond's commonwealth's attorney. McEachin, a lawyer who lived successful South Richmond, besides leaves down 3 daughters.

“The household asks for privateness astatine this time," Rountree said. "Arrangements volition beryllium announced implicit the adjacent fewer days.”

He mislaid 60 pounds and underwent a fig of surgeries to close the condition, which helium treated as  impermanent and not an obstacle to his enactment successful the House of Representatives.

McEachin was archetypal elected to legislature successful 2016 aft a tribunal ordered redistricting of the 4th District arsenic portion of its effect to alleged radical gerrymandering of the 3rd District by General Assembly Republicans.

The 4th District present includes each oregon portion of 15 cities and counties, stretching from Richmond to Brunswick, Greensville and Southampton counties. It gets astir three-fourths of its votes from Richmond and from eastbound Henrico and eastbound Chesterfield.

Rep. Bobby Scott, D-3rd, hailed McEachin's bequest arsenic "a trailblazer successful Virginia politics" arsenic the archetypal African American to tally arsenic the nominee of a large enactment for lawyer wide successful 2001, yet losing to Republican Jerry Kilgore, and arsenic the 3rd to beryllium elected to Congress from the state.

(John Mercer Langston, elected successful 1888 to correspond the 4th District, was Virginia's archetypal African American successful Congress. Scott became the 2nd 105 years later.)

"Donald was a thoughtful and principled legislator and respected by radical connected some sides of the aisle," Scott said.

Before serving successful Congress, McEachin had a agelong vocation arsenic a personal-injury lawyer and co-owner of the McEachin & Gee instrumentality steadfast successful Henrico County, but helium besides has a master’s grade successful divinity from Virginia Union University. He did not pb a church, but helped astatine Ebenezer Baptist Church successful Beaverdam.

“There’s ministry successful the church, and there’s ministry extracurricular of the church,” helium said successful 2018.

McEachin’s priorities successful Congress included protecting the Affordable Care Act and women's reproductive rights, combating clime alteration and promoting biology justice, and preserving Black cemeteries.

He introduced the African American Burial Grounds Preservation Act, a measurement that would supply $3 cardinal annually to sphere and reconstruct Black cemeteries.

McEachin took idiosyncratic pleasance successful starring a palmy effort to rename Fort Lee aft Lt. Gen. Arthur J. Gregg, the Army's highest ranking number wide erstwhile helium retired successful 1981, and Lt. Col. Charity Adams. Gregg was a lifelong person of the congressman's father, a U.S. Army veteran.

"It's a large time successful Virginia," the congressman exclaimed aft a legislature naming committee announced its choices successful May to regenerate the erstwhile Confederate general's sanction connected the sprawling basal extracurricular of Petersburg successful his district.

On Twitter Monday night, Gov. Glenn Youngkin wrote: "It's truthful bittersweet to larn of the passing of @Rep. McEachin. A valiant combatant until the end, helium admirably served Virginia & worked tirelessly to amended the lives of his constituents & Americans. Suzanne & I are reasoning of his family, friends & assemblage during this hard time."

U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-7th, successful a connection precocious Monday said: “Tonight, I americium mourning my friend, colleague, and mentor Congressman Donald McEachin. He was a bully antheral who endeavored to marque others consciousness important and heard whether successful the courtroom, the General Assembly, the U.S. Congress, oregon simply successful a quiescent moment.

"He brought his passionateness for people, his consciousness of humor, and his abiding religion successful God to his enactment each time — and helium was a relentless advocator for those who needed a voice, our earthy resources, and the radical helium represented."

U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., successful a connection said: “Up until the precise end, Don was a fighter. Even though helium battled crab and faced different trials successful caller years, helium ne'er mislaid his absorption connected societal and biology justice. Tonight, Virginia has mislaid a large person and I person mislaid a large friend.”

U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., a erstwhile Richmond metropolis councilman and mayor, recalled archetypal gathering McEachin successful 1985 and attending a enactment for his wedding to Colette.

"Our kids were the aforesaid age, we shared a statewide summons with Mark Warner [in 2001], and we’ve been unneurotic successful the Virginia national delegation for years," Kaine said successful a statement. "I was past with him connected predetermination nighttime 3 weeks ago, celebrating his win."

"He was a gentle giant, a compassionate champion for underdogs, a clime warrior, a Christian example, an knowing dad, a arrogant husband, a loyal brother," helium said.

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, a adjacent governmental ally, said called McEachin "a progressive champion" and "a existent nationalist servant who, successful sickness oregon successful wellness implicit a 22-year career, ever enactment the radical archetypal and ne'er stopped moving for and loving his community."

“His imposing framework was eclipsed lone by a fundamentally benignant and generous spirit, and the bequest of his galore contributions to the payment of this metropolis volition unrecorded on."