Former lawmaker Pat Childers dies at 79

Posted 1/7/21

In Park County and at the state capitol, state flags flew at half-staff Wednesday in honor of former state Rep. Pat Childers of Cody.

Childers died on Dec. 26 at the age of 79. A longtime …

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Former lawmaker Pat Childers dies at 79

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In Park County and at the state capitol, state flags flew at half-staff Wednesday in honor of former state Rep. Pat Childers of Cody.

Childers died on Dec. 26 at the age of 79. A longtime Marathon Oil employee, he represented Park County in the Wyoming Legislature from 1997 through 2012.

“He greatly enjoyed his legislative colleagues and the time he spent in the House,” Childers’ family members wrote. “He was never too busy to help a constituent, regardless of his or her party affiliation, and Pat was a rare combination of fiscal conservative and social moderate.”

Childers enjoyed widespread support throughout most of his eight-term, 16-year tenure in the Legislature; from 2002 through 2010, the Texas native didn’t face a single opponent.

He was also an outspoken advocate of gay marriage — and he believed that support contributed to his loss in a four-way Republican primary race in 2012. The Wyoming Legislature never legalized gay marriage, but a federal judge did in October 2014.

“Our state has been on the ‘Equality State’ line for a long time, and this is just one thing that we didn’t do,” Childers said at the time. While he welcomed the court’s ruling, the Park County and Wyoming Republican parties continue to oppose gay marriage, defining marriage as “the union of one man and one woman.”

A number of tributes to Childers have been posted to the Ballard Funeral Home website in the wake of his death, including from a couple of his former colleagues in the Legislature.

“Pat was a warm, friendly, fierce and passionate legislator, and we enjoyed pointing out the flaws in each other’s arguments,” wrote former Democratic state Rep. Chris Boswell. “He will be missed, and I’ll enjoy fond memories of our time in the House.”

Jeff Parsons of Cody had only good things to say about Childers.

“You have always been a great neighbor, golfer and legislator as well,” he wrote.

Childers represented House District 50, which included much of the City of Cody, plus Clark, Ralston, the Heart Mountain area, Sunlight and Crandall.

Childers is survived by his wife of 58 years, Sandy, and his three children. As a tribute to the late lawmaker, Gov. Mark Gordon ordered the Wyoming state flag to be displayed at half-staff from sunrise to sunset Wednesday.

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