Southern Illinoisans remember Judy Baar Topinka

Southern Illinoisans remembered Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka as an outspoken and passionate leader, a role model and committed public servant.

Marion Mayor Bob Butler called the news of Topinkas death a great shock.

I have known and been acquainted with Judy since the first time she ran for office. I always appreciated her political sagacity and doing what is best for the people she represented, Butler said. She was strong-minded, level-headed and as honest as the day was long.

Butler and Topinka shared what became an inside joke.

Whenever we would meet at a dinner or whatever, she would invariably come by and kiss me on the forehead. It was something I looked forward to, he said.

Congressman-elect Mike Bost (R-IL) called Topinka a trail-blazer in a statement released Wednesday.

She was one of the most well-known and well-respected political figures in Illinois and a trailblazer in the state Republican Party. She was respected by both sides of the political aisle because Judy was always outspoken and passionate about issues that were important to her, Bost said. She was also an incredible role model for women seeking political office in our state.

State Representative-elect Terri Bryant, of Murphysboro, said Topinka was very supportive of the Lincoln Excellence in Public Service Series and of Bryants campaign for state office.

The idea of having more women elected to office was close to her heart, Bryant said. She let House Republicans know that under no circumstances was I allowed to lose.

Topinka and Bryant did not always agree on social issues.

Even when you disagreed, Judy made an effort to find common ground, Bryant said. I never met anyone who worked as hard or was as committed to public service.

State Sen. Dave Luechtefeld (R-Okawville) remembered Topinka as a tireless advocate for the citizens of Illinois.

She was born to be a public servant. She did exactly what she wanted to do until the very end, and that was work for the citizens of Illinois, Luechtefeld said. Comptroller Topinka was a tireless advocate for common sense in government, which is not all that common, any more.

Shannon Woodworth, manager of the Du Quoin State Fair, remembered Topinka as fun, and said she was always having a good time and always making people smile.

Judy was, without question, one of the most fun persons I have ever met. She lit up the room with her smile and always had some funny quip to share. They just rolled out of her, Woodworth said.

Topinka spoke at the ribbon-cutting for the 2014 Du Quoin State Fair; Woodworth said the fair was one of Topinka's favorite spots.

We had a tremendous spot of brutal heat during the fair and Judys ribbon-cutting was during one of those days of brutal heat, Woodworth said. We went for the ribbon-cutting, and there she was. Judy did not get into any hurry and not one time did I hear a complaint about the heat. She was having a good time.

Topinka was known for her ability to pinch pennies in the state budget, but visits to Carbondale proved she used that skill in her personal life, too. She often stopped at Janes Consignment Shop in Carbondale and had been doing so for years.

Jane DeMarco, owner of the shop, said it was usually Topinkas last stop in the area, and her driver would come in to remind her it was time to go.

She always tried to come by and visit. She really was just like another one of the customers and always asked about my daughter, DeMarco said. She was friendly and liked everybody.

Butler added that Topinkas death is a great loss to the state and the people of Illinois.

I think she will be and should be honored in very splendid ways for the contributions she has made over the years, Butler said.

Source: http://thesouthern.com/news/local/southern-illinoisans-remember-judy-baar-topinka/article_18e1cc52-8545-52bb-bed4-00c93a2e3949.html

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UPDATED: Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka Dead at 70

CHICAGO (AP) Illinois Comptroller Judy Baar Topinka, whose plainspoken and sometimes salty demeanor propelled her to a pioneering political career, died early Wednesday from complications of a stroke. She was 70.

Topinka reported discomfort Tuesday morning and was admitted to a hospital in Berwyn, spokesman Brad Hahn told The Associated Press. After tests, she appeared to be doing well in the evening before suddenly losing consciousness. She was pronounced dead shortly after 2 a.m. Wednesday. Her son, Joseph Topinka, was with her.

A moderate Republican unafraid of taking independent positions and jabbing both Democrats and more conservative Republicans, Topinka had won a second term last month against Democratic challenger Sheila Simon, the current lieutenant governor.

That victory became the last chapter in a political career unlike any other woman in state history. She was the only one to hold two different statewide offices, having served as comptroller, a three-term state treasurer and several years in the Illinois Legislature. In 2006, she was Illinois GOP chairman and nominee for governor, but lost her bid to become the states first female chief executive to Democrat Rod Blagojevich.

And she remained popular and in office during the early 2000s, when she was the lone Republican in a leadership position in a state thats a Democratic stronghold.

Topinka accomplished it all with a style that made people smile and cringe sometimes simultaneously. A legendary penny-pincher who loved to talk about buying clothes at Goodwill and yard sales, she doted on her dogs and fed them McDonalds cheeseburgers and also played accordion and loved to dance to polka music.

She was known to refer to opponents as morons and when she ran for governor, she accused Blagojevich of having weasel eyes. Topinka famously told a flatulence joke at her first inauguration.

Not one to toe the party line, she not only supported abortion rights and gay marriage, she once offered gay couples her services as a flower girl free of charge.

In a political world of cocker spaniels she could be a bulldog, taking a bite out of both Democrats and right-wing Republicans without missing a beat, U.S. Sen. d**k Durbin said in a statement in which he called Topinka a friend and the states Polka Queen.

Others with whom she shared the political stage focused on her unique career and personality.

Judy was a trailblazer in every sense of the word, Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn said. Never without her signature sense of humor, Judy was a force of nature (who) paved the way for countless women in politics.

Republican Gov.-elect Bruce Rauner called Topinka one of the states all-time greats whose one-of-a-kind personality brought a smile to everyone she met

Topinka was to have been sworn in for her second term as comptroller next month. By law, Quinn, who is outgoing, has the authority to appoint a replacement.

Topinka was born in 1944 to William and Lillian Baar, the children of Czech and Slovak immigrants. They lived in Riverside, near two blue-collar Chicago suburbs that were centers for Eastern European immigrants. Lillian Baar ran a real estate business while William served in World War II. After the war, she continued to manage the business, turning it into a prominent firm.

Topinkas father hammered home the message that she could pursue any career she wanted.

He would always tell me, `Dont be a clinging vine. A man neither needs nor wants that, she once told the AP.

Topinka described herself as a fat kid and said she developed other skills to get past bullying and harassment a sense of humor and an effort to be as smart as she could.

She graduated from Northwestern University with a journalism degree and became a reporter for a suburban Chicago newspaper chain. She married and had a son, but divorced in 1981 after 16 years.

The same year, she began a four-year stint in the Illinois House, which she ran for because she said corrupt officials were ignoring the communitys needs. She later spent 10 years as a state senator before running for state treasurer.

As state party chairman, she stepped forward to run for governor in 2006 due to the mounting political scandal involving outgoing Gov. George Ryan, who eventually was convicted of corruption. During the campaign, Blagojevich broadcast effective ads showing her dancing the polka with Ryan.

Topinka likened her job to being a skunk at a picnic a reference to the task of writing checks to a state with a backlog of unpaid bills.

Topinka often sounded like a doting mother when she talked about the state of Illinois.

I feel its being hurt and abused, she said during her gubernatorial run. If I dont stop it, Id be complicit in watching it go down the tubes and I dont want that.

Former GOP Gov. Jim Edgar noted that Topinka was among a shrinking number of moderate Republicans and gave folks who are not traditionally Republican in recent years someone they could talk to and relate to.

Theres not going to be another Judy Baar Topinka, Edgar said. State treasurer, comptroller for the most part people dont know those offices. Judy had a personality that people knew her and remembered her.

This story was updated at 11:32 a.m.

( Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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Source: http://stlouis.cbslocal.com/2014/12/10/illinois-comptroller-judy-baar-topinka-dead-at-70/

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