WASHINGTON DC – (WBAP/KLIF) – President Joe Biden is expected to travel to Dallas today, arriving at Dallas Love Field around 6:15 pm to attend a prayer service and say last goodbyes to a longtime colleague and self described friend, Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson. “EBJ” died New Year’s Eve. The prayer service and wake Monday begins at 6:30 pm.
Johnson, a nurse who helped bring hundreds of millions of federal dollars to the Dallas area as the region’s most powerful Democrat, was a trailblazer. She was the first nurse to be elected not only to Congress but also to the Texas House in 1972 and Texas Senate in 1986. Johnson served three decades in the House, and became the first Black woman to chair the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology, and led the Congressional Black Caucus. After delaying treatment several times, she left office in January.
Following back surgery in December, she was released to a rehabilitation center, where her family charges she received negligent care, resulting in an infection that is reported to have caused her death. The family of EBJ is reported to remain in negotiations with Baylor White and Scott regarding the allegations.
President Joe Biden hailed Johnson’s “immense courage” and called her “an icon and mentor to generations of public servants, through whom her legacy of resilience and purpose will endure.”
Funeral services for EBJ will also be held at Concord Church in Dallas Tuesday morning. Burial is expected in Austin at Texas State Cemetery. Concord Church is located in southeast Dallas, at 6808 Pastor Bailey Drive; south of West Redbird lane, and north of West Camp Wisdom Road, just west of Highway 67.
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