It was a day mixed with grief and hope at Central Baptist Church in Americus, Georgia on Friday. Two days after the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world, State Senator Greg Kirk was laid to rest. 

We grieved because he died at a young age when cancer took his life six months after the diagnosis. Yet, even in grief, the service was one ringing with hope in this Christmas season. 

I met Greg for the first time in 2003 when Governor Sonny Perdue appointed me to the Georgia Board for the Department of Human Resources. Greg owned a business that managed services and care for individuals with developmental disabilities. Greg was a staunch advocate for getting the highest quality services to the individual in the most efficient manner. 

He proudly demonstrated to me a system he developed to manage the maze of complex paperwork to assure that individuals could get the needed services. His company managed hundreds of clients but he watched each one as if that person was one of his own. If something was due that could impact the person’s service, someone heard about it. 

Greg would not hesitate to call me as his 2nd Congressional District Board member to clear an administrative block. It was not that he wanted to go around anyone in the process, but he would not put up with excuses that so easily flowed from bureaucratic lips. With his system, he had the facts in hand and no one could question the facts. 

I vividly remember when Greg called me to tell me that he was seriously considering running for the open Senate seat. I knew that there was another candidate from Tift County that would be running and told Greg of the uphill run he would have. 

Greg lived in Senate District 13 that included a portion of Sumter County. From a purely geographical standpoint, the odds were stacked against him. Greg was undaunted and qualified to run. 

He ran an old fashioned political campaign. He called and visited every potential GOP primary voter that he could find. Greg firmly believed that when he personally asked for someone’s vote, there was a pretty good chance that he would get it. His campaign was not negative and was pretty low key. 

When the votes came in on election night, it was a shock to most people in the District that he actually won. His strategy worked. He got the person’s vote mainly because he contacted the voter and asked for it. 

Greg worked as a State Senator with the same dogged determination. When two law enforcement officers in Sumter County were killed in the line of duty, a local citizen approached Greg with an idea of having a specialty license plate to support law enforcement. Greg introduced legislation which passed Senate and House and was signed by Governor Deal. 

I looked around the crowded church auditorium. The uniforms of law enforcement officers stood out in sea of those who came to remember Senator Kirk. Governor Brian Kemp and the most powerful legislators in the State of Georgia sat in silent honor.

Just weeks earlier, in the nearby city of Camilla, Georgia the same host of leaders sat in memory of Representative Jay Powell who also died at an early age. It is a reminder of the truth that Billy Graham observed at the funeral of President Richard Nixon. “Death is the great equalizer.”

Rev. Bud Womack said in the funeral service that the most important decision Greg ever made was trusting Jesus Christ as his Savior. The very listing of Greg’s name in his obituary and the service itself as, “Senator (Rev.) Greg Mark Kirk,” demonstrated his strong faith. 

We know that we will not see Greg again in this lifetime, but as Greg’s friend sang, “Because He Lives”, we can face tomorrow. We know that He holds the future and those who trust in Christ will spend eternity together.

Rosalyn and family, you are in our prayers as you face the days ahead without Greg at your side. May you experience His grace that is all sufficient.  

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