INDIANAPOLIS - State Sen. Anita O. Bowser, a Democrat from Michigan City, died early Sunday following a battle with breast cancer, a spokesman for Senate Democrats said. She was 86.

Senate Democrat spokesman Jason Tomcsi said Bowser died peacefully in her sleep about 6 a.m. at a hospice in Indianapolis with a nurse and a friend from Michigan City at her side.

Bowser had been under medical care for the past two weeks, but was released last week to hospice care as her condition worsened.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

Bowser was a constitutional scholar and professor emerita at Purdue University. She has served in the Senate since 1992, and was a state representative from 1980 to 1992. Her current term expires in 2008.

Bowser had been the ranking Democrat on the Senate Pensions and Labor Committee and was a member of the Judiciary Committee, the Corrections, Criminal and Civil Matters Committee, the Ethics Committee, and Education and Career Development Committee.

Indianapolis - The Indiana Statehouse is mourning the passing of one of its longtime lawmakers Sunday. Anita Bowser passed away Sunday morning after a prolonged illness.

The Michigan City Democrat was known for her intellect and willingness to speak her mind.

After 25 years in the state legislature, first as a representative, then as senator. Anita Bowser gained a reputation for her no-nonsense approach. The former constitutional law professor was respected on both sides of the aisle.


Former State Senator Billie Breaux said, "She was an amazing person, she had a great deal of energy. She was warm, sensitive and very caring and was an educator from her heart."

Only those closest to the 86-year-old knew about her battle with cancer. She wanted to focus on legislation regarding the death penalty and the mentally ill.

"She considered that her last hurrah and so she wanted to spend time doing that as opposed to discussing the fact that she was ill," said State Senator Earline Rogers from her home in Gary Sunday.

She was also passionate about a proposed amendment that would ban gay marriage. She vehemently opposed the idea and spoke about it during the senate session last month.

"Our educational system is going to be affected, but more pervasive, our government is going to be affected by this piece. I will call it trash," said Bowser just a few weeks ago during debate about gay marriage legislation.

"That was her style she was very passionate, she was very honest she spoke exactly what she felt which was just admirable," said former Senator Breaux.

"When we look at our lives and those persons that have come into our lives... I just personally am ever thankful that I knew Anita Bowser," says Senator Rogers.

Despite her declining health, the senator wanted to continue representing her constituents.

She died this weekend in Indianapolis, not at home in Michigan City because she planning on being at work Monday morning at the statehouse.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

A spokesman for the state Democratic party says Bowser's seat in the senate will remain vacant until a replacement is chosen in a couple of weeks.

Governor Mitch Daniels issued a statement Sunday afternoon about the death of state Senator Anita Bowser:

"I am truly, truly sad at this news. Senator Bowser could not have been kinder or more open in our two years of acquaintance. Our last two meetings were about building Northwest Indiana and about building higher education, which she cared about so deeply. Indiana will miss her leadership, and I will miss her personally."

Bowser dies at 86

By Rick A. Richards, The News-Dispatch


She is remembered as the ‘conscience of the Senate'

Longtime Democratic state Sen. Anita Bowser of Michigan City died early Sunday at The Columbia Club in downtown Indianapolis, where she was living under the care of hospice for the past week. She was 86.


Bowser, whose district included most of LaPorte County and the northwestern corner of St. Joseph County, battled breast cancer in recent months. Treatment caused her to miss a major portion of the current session of the General Assembly.

Even though she served in the minority party in the Senate since being elected to that body in 1992, Bowser was highly respected and recognized by colleagues on both sides of the political aisle as an expert on constitutional issues. Last week, when the senate agreed to create an interim study committee to review Indiana's death penalty law, her colleagues named it the “Bowser Committee.”

Before being elected to the senate, Bowser served in the Indiana House of Representatives from 1980 to 1992.

Former state Rep. Mary Kay Budak, a LaPorte Republican, was a close friend of Bowser's. On her way back from Noblesville on Sunday, where she had visited family, Budak said, “I cried all the way home.

“People used to ask us all the time, ‘Why are you two friends?'.”

Budak said her friendship with Bowser wasn't based on politics because the two frequently disagreed on issues.

“We had a close bond, and even though didn't agree on a lot of things, we would still get together at night when we were in the Legislature,” Budak said. “She is my friend, and she will be forever.”

Budak said she admired Bowser's principles and called her “the conscience of the Senate.”

“She wasn't afraid to tell anyone they were wrong,” Budak said. “I think her legacy for her colleagues will be that before you make that final vote, ask, ‘Is that the right thing to do for the Constitution?' ”

State Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, said he was saddened by Bowser's death.

“I loved Anita Bowser,” he said. “To her delightful irritation, I often called her ‘Aunt Anita.' I will miss her both as a close friend and as a member of the family.”

Because of her strong principles, Pelath said, Bowser was criticized frequently, but she refused to compromise her principles.

“As is commanded, Anita loved her enemies as well as her neighbors,” Pelath said. “As a result, she received much love in return.”

State Rep. Tom Demody, R-LaPorte, is in his first session of the General Assembly and hadn't spent much time with Bowser, but said her reputation is impeccable.

“No one believed in her convictions more,” Dermody said. “She deserves all of the respect that she is being given. She knew the Constitution as well as anyone, and we could all learn from her.

“I didn't get a chance to talk with her much, but early on she did talk with me and was more than willing to answer questions and talk about issues.”

the former LaPorte County Democratic Party chairman, called Bowser “an extraordinary woman.”

“We are all richer for having known and worked with her,” he said. “Her command of issues and passion for government as a force for good in people's lives was evident for all.”

Friedman said “the little guy just lost a huge friend.”

He described Bowser as fearless and passionate about government.

“In her 26 years in the Legislature,” he said, “she was never compromised. She had an unshakable integrity.”

Even though Bowser was criticized for her controversial positions on the death penalty and same-sex marriage, it didn't seem to matter at election time.

“Give credit to the voters of this county who kept sending her down there,” Friedman said. “They said, ‘We like feisty Anita speaking her mind.' She developed a pretty good coat of armor around her, and even in tough landslide years like 1984 where Republicans were doing well, she survived because people liked her brand of independence.”

The Rev. Charles Doyle was a close friend of Bowser's for 30 years, and the two worked closely on ending the death penalty in Indiana.

“Due to her effort, Indiana no longer gives the death penalty to minors or the retarded,” he said, “and she entered a bill in this session to ban the execution of the mentally ill.”

“Anita was a wonderful human being. She was deeply committed to her work as a professor of constitutional law at Purdue North Central ... She had the courage of her convictions and the skills to forcefully make them clear to the public.”

Michigan City Mayor Chuck Oberlie said Sunday afternoon, “We've lost a great lady. She was very intelligent, very articulate, a great student of the issues. She was dedicated to the protection of our Constitution.”

Oberlie said her legacy is twofold: how she demonstrated that people of high integrity can be successful in the political world, and her commitment to constitutional law.

“She really looked out for the fundamentals of the document,” Oberlie said. “She would stand up for your rights, even though she disagreed with what you said. That was her nature.”

Bowser was a professor of constitutional law at PNC, and Oberlie spoke to her class frequently.

“It always struck me how she was able to get students to participate in the debate on the controversies on both sides and keep it centered on a factual basis and not let emotions get involved,” he said. “She always stayed with the facts. We're going to miss her.”

PNC Chancellor James Dworkin said Bowser's impact on the university has been huge.

“She was one of the first professors we had (when PNC was) at the Barker Mansion,” he said. “When I first came to PNC in 2000 and met Anita, I understood immediately the role she played at PNC and her admiration and hopes for PNC.”

In one of her last acts as a member of the General Assembly, Bowser got $1 million included in the state budget for PNC to begin the process of erecting a student and convocation center at PNC.

“Every time I talked to her, she told me the last thing she wanted to do was to get that building,” Dworkin said.

Arrangements for Bowser are pending at Carlisle Funeral Home.

LaPorte attorney Shaw Friedman,

Bowser stayed focused on her job

By Rick A. Richards, The News-Dispatch

Anita Bowser 1921 - 2007

To the very end, Anita Bowser was doing homework. Even though she was confined to her room at The Columbia Club in downtown Indianapolis, where most state legislators live when the General Assembly is in session, Bowser's thoughts were on the senate floor two blocks away.

And even though cancer wracked her body and hospice was set up for her, Bowser went about the busy work of being a legislator, surrounded by bills and committee reports, marking them up, just as she had done for every day of her 26 years in the General Assembly.

Bowser's death early Sunday leaves a huge void in the Senate because she was viewed by her colleagues as the most knowledgeable senator on the state's Constitution.

That knowledge came from Bowser's first career in education. She was one of the first professors hired by Purdue University-North Central in 1950 when classes were held at Barker Mansion in Michigan City. She was hired full time by PNC in 1956. In 1969, Bowser, an assistant professor of political science, was named the outstanding undergraduate teacher at a Purdue regional campus. In 1985, Bowser was promoted to full professor.

But teaching politics took a turn in 1979 when Bowser was elected by precinct committeemen to fill the state representative seat of Clifford Arnold, who has just been elected mayor of Michigan City. Bowser won the vote on the second ballot over five other candidates, including former Michigan City Mayor Joe LaRocco.

Bowser's strong principles on individual rights and the sanctity of the state Constitution were evident early. In her first session in 1980, Bowser came out against a bill that would have required textbooks at all public schools “teach high moral standards.” She has fought for free textbooks for Indiana children, against “deplorable conditions” in the state's prison, against the death penalty and against allegations she was soft on crime.

Bowser said the 1980 bill on textbook morality lessons could require schools to ban classics such as “Huckleberry Finn.” The bill never became law.

In her 1996 campaign, she was challenged by Republican Pat Lain, who said Bowser was soft on crime. Bowser countered by presenting a list of 58 anti-crime votes she cast as a legislator, including a proposed constitutional amendment she wrote that would recognize the rights of crime victims.

She also was a strong supporter of women's rights, and when a bill was introduced in 1995 to require women seeking an abortion to wait 18 hours before undergoing the procedure, she introduced a proposal that would require an 18-hour wait for men seeking a vasectomy. That got her mentioned in Playboy magazine.

By 1989, Bowser's reputation was such that her name was being considered by Democrats for a seat in the U.S. Congress. Instead, Bowser chose to remain in the state Legislature, and Tim Roemer went on to win election to Congress.

In her 1990 campaign for state representative, Gov. Evan Bayh visited Michigan City to stump for Bowser. He described her as “an excellent representative,” and that she was a legislator he could count on.

Bowser decided to go full time into politics in 1991, retiring as a teacher after 41 years at PNC.

In 1992, Bowser, then 71, announced she would leave the house to run for the state-senate seat held by Dennis Neary, who chose not to run for re-election. She won election to Neary's seat, and held it until her death Sunday. Her current term expires in 2008.

State Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, said he wasn't surprised by Bowser's dedication. He said he talked to her last week, and she was still focused on her work.

“Up until her final day, her thoughts were with the people she served,” he said. “Although her body was giving way, her mind remained on the business of Senate votes, public policy and the future of the state. Anita remained a senator until the end.”

PNC Chancellor James Dworkin said what was impressive about Bowser was not only her intellect, but how she dealt with people.

“I remember sitting in (her) classroom and thinking her knowledge was so impressive,” he said. “As a teacher, you have to be able to take complicated material and bring it down to where the average person who doesn't understand can comprehend it. She was that kind person.”

As for the future, it will be up to the state Democratic Party chairman to call a caucus of the precinct committeemen in the 8th District to fill her seat.

Shaw Friedman, a former LaPorte County Democratic chairman, said it is too early to speculate who might be in line to fill her seat.

“I expect we can replace her before session ends,” Friedman said. “It's too early to speculate on names, but once we get through the funeral, there will be more on that.”

According to an announcement Sunday from the state Democratic Party, state law requires the district precinct committee fill the vacancy no later than 30 days after the state chairman receives official notice of Bowser's death. After that, the chairman must give notice at least 10 days prior to a special caucus of precinct committeemen.

Tribute paid to Bowser
By Mike Smith, The Associated Press

INDIANAPOLIS - Colleagues of the late state Sen. Anita Bowser remembered her Tuesday as a constitutional scholar who consistently voted her conscience and was passionate about her views on civil rights and trying to help the underprivileged.

“She was a repository of ideas,” Sen. Earline Rogers, D-Gary, said as she fought back tears during an hourlong tribute in the Senate chamber. “I needed that moral compass.

“She is my friend, my mentor, I loved her dearly, and I just thank God our paths crossed.”

Bowser died Sunday at age 86 after a battle with breast cancer. The Michigan City Democrat was first elected to the Indiana House in 1980, and was later elected to the Senate in 1992, representing District Eight, which includes LaPorte and St. Joseph counties. Her current term expires in 2008.

Flowers graced her Senate desk on Tuesday, and black bows hung on the Senate doors in her memory. Funeral services are set for Thursday in Michigan City, and the Senate will not meet that day so members can attend.

Bowser earned several degrees, including a law degree, two master's degrees and a doctorate.

Bowser touched many lives
By Rick A. Richards, The News-Dispatch

The impact that state Sen. Anita Bowser had on Michigan City, LaPorte County and state politics is well known. Her principles and dedication to public service was admired by Democrats and Republicans alike. But it was her impact on the lives of individuals that will be her legacy.

After her death Sunday at age 86 and more than a quarter of century in the General Assembly, she was regularly described as “the conscience of the senate.” Bowser will be laid to rest in Greenwood Cemetery today, following a public service at Notre Dame Catholic Church at 1 p.m.

Circuit Court Judge Tom Alevizos, a former state representative from Michigan City, said Bowser's real legacy is the inspiration she provided to the young people she taught at Purdue University-North Central and the encouragement she gave to everyone to get involved.

“We all know about her causes and not backing down from her beliefs, but what a lot of people have missed is how she profoundly encouraged people to get involved,” said Alevizos. “She encouraged me when I was a senior in college and an intern in the General Assembly, to enter politics and go to law school. She was very influential.”

When Bowser was chosen to fill the seat of state Sen. Dennis Neary in 1992, Alevizos was chosen to fill Bowser's seat in the House of Representatives. He said it was an honor for him to follow in her footsteps. Over the years, he said the two developed a bond, and on Dec. 29, when he was sworn in as Circuit Court judge, Bowser was there to do it.

Alevizos was touched by the gesture, even though Bowser was seriously ill battling breast cancer. “I have found out since that it was Anita that actually requested to swear me in. I guess we know now she was undergoing radiation treatment. People told her not to bother, but she did it anyway.

"There are many people who influenced me, but she profoundly encouraged me,” said Alevizos. “That is her legacy, all the people that she's influenced ... to get involved in politics or issues.” And, he said, it should be a growing commodity as the people she influenced, influence others.

He said that what impressed most about Bowser is that she always voted for what she felt was right, not what was politically expedient. “I would cringe at some of things I would hear her say, but I would always smile because it was good to know there are politicians out there who are willing to do what they think is right regardless of the ramifications.”

Another influenced by Bowser is Superior Court 4 Judge William Boklund. “She had a tremendous influence on me. I go back with Anita to PNC. I took several classes with Anita, and the interesting thing is the classes seemed easy, but there was nothing easy about them. She made them seem easy.”

Boklund said he especially remembers a paper he did in which he received an A- while a classmate received an A and both wrote about the same thing and made nearly identical points. He asked her why the grades were different, and Bowser didn't hesitate. “She said he's doing as well as he can and you can do better,” said Boklund, who now teaches the constitutional law class at PNC that Bowser used to teach.

Boklund said he is “privileged” to teach that class, and added, “If all people in political life were as principled as she was, this would be a better country. She was a breath of fresh air.”

Bowser's influence went beyond politics and the courts, too. On Wednesday, Eugene Gondek, 59, explained how he never forgot what Bowser did for him when he was a child.

Gondek, 59, is hearing impaired, and said at the Michigan City Public Library while reading Bowser's obituary, that she was his first speech teacher at The Therapy Center of LaPorte County. It's now known as Barker Woods Enrichment Center, and Bowser was one of the people who helped get the agency going.

Contact City Editor Rick A. Richards at rrichards@thenewsdispatch.com.

Sen. Bowser laid to rest

By Amanda Haverstick, The News-Dispatch


Indiana state Sen. Anita O. Bowser, who was known as the conscience of Indiana senate, was laid to rest Thursday afternoon in Greenwood Cemetery.

In addition to her family, about 25 members of the state legislature were present, along with local political leaders, dignitaries and members of the LaPorte County League of Women Voters, of which Bowser was a longtime member.

The atmosphere in Notre Dame Church's sanctuary was somber, but at times cheerful, as Bowser's colleagues paid tribute to her tenacity, her insight and her sense of humor.

The service was officiated by two of Bowser's close friends, the Rev. Charles Doyle, a retired priest, and the Rev. Randy Duncan of the New Life Community Church of Hope.

“She was my senator and my friend,” Duncan said. “She was a woman who stood for the rights of people that many deemed unworthy.”

Doyle recalled how Bowser asked him to officiate her funeral after she learned her cancer was terminal.

“When she was told that she had a limited amount of time, she said, ‘I want you to have my funeral,'” Doyle said. “Anita Bowser was a lover ... she loved living. She loved her studies, she loved her students. She took a special interest in people with disabilities. She loved the people of her district and felt responsible for them.”

Those who spoke at the service included, former Gov. Joe Kernan; Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman; Senate President Pro Tem David Long, R-Fort Wayne; Senate Minority Leader Richard Young, D-Milltown; Indiana House Speaker B. Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend; House Minority Leader Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis; Sen. Earline Rogers, D-Gary; Rep. Shelia Klinker, D-Lafayette; Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City; LaPorte County Circuit Court Judge Tom Alevizos; past legislative assistant Russ Bennett; and Deborah Rodecap, director of the Barker Woods Enrichment Center.

Kernan, who served with Bowser for seven sessions of the General Assembly, pointed out where Bowser's desk might have been had the sanctuary been the Senate floor.

“I look out on the congregation and feel like I'm at an Indiana State Senate meeting. I think we have enough members here that we have a quorum. I think Anita had more degrees than I had base hits,” said Kernan, a former baseball player. “It was that extraordinary wisdom she brought to the task every day.”

Pelath recalled that in Bowser's last days she was still concerned about public policy and the direction it would take.

“One of the great paradoxes of life is that we are not complete people until we die. Up until the very end, Anita was still a work in progress,” Pelath said. “She still admonished me on some votes.”

Skillman recalled that when they were sworn in to the Indiana Senate together in November 1992, she immediately saw in Bowser a strong model of female leadership.

“Sen. Bowser encouraged me tremendously. She went out of her way to say something positive and encouraging to every member of the General Assembly,” Skillman said. “She led with tenacity. She led with conviction. She lost her final physical battle, but her courageous spirit is alive and well in the Indiana State House.”

Bowser's fighting spirit was also recalled by Bauer.

“Anita was a fighter. She fought nicely, quietly, neatly,” Bauer said. “People like Anita lifted us up in the General Assembly. This should be an occasion for joy.”

Bowser's roommates at the Columbia Club in Indianapolis, Rogers and Klinker, recalled how they were known as the Three Musketeers and the Three Amigos and paid tribute to their friend by sticking a copy of the Indiana Constitution in her casket.

“I'm going to miss ‘Driving Miss Daisy,'” said Rogers, referring to the nickname she had given Bowser.

After services at Notre Dame Church ended, Indiana State Police escorts led the motorcade to the cemetery. Doyle and Duncan concluded the service with prayer at the Greenwood Cemetery Chapel.

Contact reporter Amanda Haverstick at ahaverstick@thenewsdispatch.com.
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“Even as passionate as she could be, she never raised her voice. She spoke with good clarity. She was one of those senators that when she spoke, people listened.”

- Former Gov. Joe Kernan

“She was a delightful blend of femininity and rigor. It was impossible not to be fond of Anita.”

- Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman

“She was fond of calling me Skippy.”

- House Minority Leader Brian Bosma, recalling the nickname Bowser gave him after a joke he told

“One thing that will always touch me about Anita ... she happened to be one of the most moral people I know.”

- Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City

“‘Anita, if Rush Limbaugh can run a successful radio program piped up on OxyContin, there is no reason you cannot be a state senator on a morphine pump.'”

- past legislative assistant Russ Bennett, quoting a conversation Rep. Sheila Klinker, D-Lafayette, had with Bowser

“Even there, she wanted me to get in the ring.”

- Indiana House Speaker B. Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, on the time he and Bowser attended a boxing match

“She accomplished so very much in her time with us. I think it's a life we should all aspire to. We all knew Anita in different ways ... to most of us, she was a friend.”

- Senate Minority Leader Richard Young, D-Milltown