Longtime Republican state legislator, Mary S. Rogeness, bids fond farewell to colleagues

Friday, December 19, 2008
By DAN RINGdring@repub.com

BOSTON - Rep. Mary S. Rogeness, one of the last Republican legislators in Western Massachusetts, told her colleagues to stay strong because the tough economic times won't last forever.

"Have faith in Massachusetts," said Rogeness, 67, drawing the words from a speech by J. Calvin Coolidge, a Northampton lawyer who rose to become president from 1923 to 1929. "I have faith in you."

Rogeness was among 10 House members who gave farewell speeches during a formal session.

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