RUSSELL, Kan. (KAKE) - Saturday was a big day for the people of Kansas to honor and say good-bye to one of its favorite sons: Robert Joseph Dole.

Russell was Dole's boyhood home, and a place he loved. It was the place he learned the values that made him the legendary lawmaker he was.  On Saturday, inside St. Mary Queen of Angels Catholic Church, some of those whose lives he touched had a chance to say thank-you.

Hundreds of dignitaries, fellow veterans and long-time hometown friends honored Dole, who was a lawmaker, war hero, husband and father.

The people who have followed in Bob Dole's footsteps in Congress talked about some of his many accomplishments while in office, and how he achieved them because of his unequaled charm and integrity. 

"...Saving Social Security from bankruptcy, fighting hunger in the United States and abroad, the Americans with Disabilities act," Senator Roger Marshall, (R)-Kansas said.

Senator Jerry Moran - (R) Kansas praised Dole, saying that "Bob Dole was a man of hope... hope for recovery, hope for those with disabilities to have full access to the world around them, hope that no child would go to bed hungry, hope that every veteran would receive the care and benefits they deserve, hope that the aged would live their remaining years with dignity." 

Saturday's memorial was just a few miles from where Dole's impossible story began: growing up in poverty, being severely wounded in WW2, then ascending to become the Majority Leader of the United States Senate and Republican Presidential nominee. Those who remembered him today say it could've only happened to a man like Bob Dole from a place like Russell. 

The service was filled with light moments, too as was Dole's life. Governor Laura Kelly recalled when Dole won the Presidential Medal of Freedom, give to him by Bill Clinton, who had just beaten him in the general election.


"In his remarks that day, Dole quipped, "I had a dream that I would be this historical week, receiving something from the president. But, I thought it would be the front door key," recalled Governor Laura Kelly.   

All those who spoke today agree that there may never be another Bob Dole.

AND, ALL WHO SPOKE TODAY AGREE, THERE MAY NEVER BE ANOTHER BOB DOLE.

"Bob Dole fought the good fight, he finished the race, but here it is, this is what makes him my champion: He...he kept the faith," said Rear Admiral Barry Black - U.S. Senate Chaplain.