Friends and family of Dennis Richardson — the Central Point city councilor who went on to become a state representative and Oregon’s secretary of state — remember him as a humble man.

A man who likely would have balked at the idea of a memorial to him.

“I’m sure he would be, if he was here, reluctant to accept such an honor,” said U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz, R-Ore., Monday morning at Don Jones Memorial Park in Central Point. “But he’s deserving of every bit of it.”

The congressman spoke before scores of people who came out to recognize Memorial Day — and to pay tribute to Richardson, who died of brain cancer in February 2019 at age 69.

Beneath a brilliant blue sky, the city held a dedication ceremony for the Dennis Richardson Memorial, unveiling a plaque, mounted in granite, that bears Richardson’s likeness and summarizes his life story.

The new memorial features a seating wall; behind it, the city’s parks department has planted temporary flowers of red, white and blue-ish purple.

The centerpiece is a recirculating fountain; water shoots skyward from a marble bowl atop river rocks.

The Richardson memorial extends the larger Oregon Fallen War Heroes Memorial, a project he spearheaded at the suggestion of a constituent. Dedicated in 2008, the older memorial, which covers wars from Oregon’s founding to the present, honors thousands of the state’s service members who lost their lives in military action.

Talk of a memorial to Richardson began soon after his death. Early discussions considered a bench, a tree, a plaque. Nothing flashy. At one point someone suggested a statue, Richardson’s widow, Cathy, said in an interview.

“I said no,” she remembered with a laugh. “Knowing my husband, he would not want something like that.”

Construction of the Richardson memorial came as part of the original memorial’s renovation, a project that involved laying down a concrete landing, installing new lights and planting trees and flowers.

The full project — delayed by the coronavirus pandemic and budgetary issues — cost about $550,000 in state funds and city dollars, according to Matt Samitore, the city’s parks and public works director. Roughly $100,000 went to the original memorial; the remaining $450,000 or so went to the Richardson memorial. Knife River did the construction work.

The city had originally planned to dedicate the Richardson memorial last Veterans Day, but the fountain wasn’t ready, and more maintenance work needed to be done, Samitore said.

At the bottom of Richardson’s memorial plaque is the Latin phrase “Pro Tanto Quid Retribuamus”: “What shall we give in return for receiving so much?”

Service was the theme of Richardson’s life — service to God, to country, to Oregonians — according to the people closest to him.

“No matter where he was, he was always being of service,” said Dawn Phillips, who served as Richardson’s chief of staff in the Oregon Legislature, in an interview.

During the Vietnam War, Richardson flew combat missions for the U.S. Army — an experience that exposed him to Agent Orange, a toxic defoliant that harmed his health, Mike Oliver, a former planning commission chair and Richardson’s friend, reminded the audience.

His widow, Cathy, has said she believes the chemical exposure led to the cancer that killed him.

Cathy Richardson, Samitore, state Sen. Kim Thatcher, R-Keizer, and David Dotterrer, a Jackson County commissioner, also spoke at the ceremony. Jennifer Vranes, Richardson and Cathy’s eldest daughter, opened the event with a prayer.

They spoke of Richardson as thoughtful and deliberative, a hard worker and skilled negotiator — a man who did his due diligence and acted as a responsible steward of the taxpayers’ money.

Dotterrer assisted Richardson with the state budget while the latter co-chaired the Joint Committee on Ways and Means.

“Dennis taught me what it means to govern, what it means to be an elected official and to do what the government and elected officials are expected to do,” he said. “He taught me to stay in your lane. He taught me what’s important and what you need to focus on.

“He also taught me about integrity in politics,” Dotterrer continued. “He taught me that you can have honest disagreements and that you may even have to occasionally raise your voice a little bit. But at the end of the day, you need to govern and do what’s right for the people.”

Richardson was also, Bentz said, a “happy warrior” — optimistic enough to run for Oregon secretary of state in 2016, two years after a failed run for the governorship.

When Richardson won, it had been more than 30 years since a Republican served in the role and about 15 since someone in the party had held statewide office.

During his years in Salem, Richardson used his power to advocate for veterans and for children in the state’s foster care system, the speakers noted.

Cathy Richardson said she and her family think the city’s memorial to him is “just perfect.” Richardson would have felt honored, she said.

“But he wouldn’t want anyone to think it was about him,” she said. He would want people “to consider it a place for everyone’s enjoyment, a place where families can come and enjoy the peace and beauty of this area.”

After the plaque was revealed, visitors streamed through the site.

Bret Golla, of Shady Cove, walked up to Cathy and shook her hand: “I remember voting for him,” he told her.

Golla said in an interview that he attended Richardson’s memorial service at the local Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Asked why he came to Richardson’s memorial dedication, Golla said, “He’s one of the pillars of this area. It’s a great honor and privilege to be here.”

Cathy Richardson said in an interview, “It just makes me happy that he won’t be forgotten.”