Published: October 23, 2006 08:52 pm      

Heart attack claims political activist Florine Warden

Florine Warden, a self-appointed cheerleader for the Democratic Party who took politics seriously year-round, died Monday, a day after suffering a pre-dawn heart attack at her home in Calloway Heights.

Warden was one of Beckley’s better known and more colorful figures, using her steep front yard overlooking the four-lane on Robert C. Byrd Drive to plug Democratic candidates with massive billboards.

“No one believed more, felt more and fought harder for the workers of the world than Mrs. Florine Warden,” Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., said in a brief statement.

“While we on earth have lost a voice for the working men, Heaven has gained a new angel armed with a trumpet that harkens like a bullhorn.”

Perhaps her favorite of all time — Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va. — likewise ascribed Warden to a heavenly home.

“At the Pearly Gates, I bet that St. Peter will be holding a sign, ‘Welcome home, Florine. Job well done.’”

Byrd called her “one of the most ardent, sincere and dedicated advocates for working people and for West Virginia that I have ever known. She never flinched. She let her passions and her patriotism guide her.”

Another of her favorite political luminaries, Beckley attorney Bill Wooton, was called to her bedside Sunday at Beckley Appalachian Regional Hospital.

“She was lucid and coherent,” said Wooton, a former chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and Warden’s medical power of attorney.

Warden suffered the heart arrest around 5 a.m. Sunday, but managed to drive herself to the hospital, Wooton said.

“She was really a remarkable woman,” Wooton said.

“That she could drive herself to the hospital after a heart attack is further evidence of what a remarkable person she was. She was one of a kind. She’ll never be duplicated. My thoughts and prayers are with her family right now. It’s a tough time for them.”

Sen. Jay Rockefeller said West Virginia has lost a true public servant in Florine Warden.

“(She was) a tireless activist who fought for what she believed in and understood more than most the importance of community involvement and speaking out. For decades, she advocated not for herself, but for people in need in Southern West Virginia and across the entire state, serving particularly as a voice for women and working families,” Rockefeller said.

“Florine’s profound dedication left an impression on so many lives — and now, I hope, her legacy will do the same.”

Elaine Harris, international representative for the Communications Workers of America, remembered Warden as a fighter for the underdog.

“She was like the Energizer Bunny,” Harris said.

“She gave us the energy and inspiration to keep working. She was just a good person all the way around.”

Warden was a fixture at Democratic rallies and any forum in which candidates of both major parties were invited to speak. A few years ago, at a Chamber of Commerce breakfast, she bent the rules and hoisted a huge sign backing one of her favorites.

A diehard liberal, Warden couldn’t suffer even a moderate Democrat, if she perceived them as anti-labor.

When businessman Joe Manchin ran for governor in 1996 against Charlotte Pritt, she arrived at his rally at a sporting goods shop, armed with a bullhorn and unleashed a steady chant, “Low blow Joe,” and all Manchin could do was smile helplessly through the barrage.

That bullhorn became synonymous with Warden, as did the oversized political signs gracing her front lawn.

Raleigh County Democratic Chairman Joe Brouse said the party has lost “its most tireless advocate and also has lost someone who very much cared about Beckley and the Raleigh County community.”

Warden not only toiled for the party but for working families as well, Brouse said.

“The party sends out its condolences to her family and thanks her for her hard work over the years,” he added.

She used a changeable letter sign to tout issues and needle politicians with whom she disagreed — chiefly Republicans.

One of them, Sen. Russ Weeks, R-Raleigh, said he didn’t mind the signs, adding, “I got a kick out of it. I enjoyed that.”

Apprised of her death, Weeks said, “I really and truly hate that. She’s in a much better place now.”

Raleigh County Republican Chairman Joe Long and his candidates took the signs in stride.

“She was always fun,” Long said. “She turned up everywhere with her signs. She came to Mountain State University games with signs and rooted for MSU. She’ll be missed. We’ll miss her signs up there. We (Republicans) made her sign in the yard several times.

“She cared about what was going on. She supported those people who thought would do the job. She voiced her opinion. She was involved in the community in many ways.”

Among issues she fought for was a professional baseball team in Beckley and altering the state seal so that it depicted a woman.

Senate Majority Whip Billy Wayne Bailey, D-Wyoming, had a falling out with her some years back over workers’ compensation, but the two ultimately buried the hatchet.

“In the last two years, we fought side by side for the same people,” Bailey said. “She was always a hard fighter for what she believed in. She will be sorely missed by many.”

— E-mail: mannix@register-herald.com