The late U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein was toasted Thursday at a memorial service as a leader with uncommon integrity and a defender of American values — as well as a talented artist and a grandmother who gave crooked haircuts in her kitchen.President Joe Biden, who sent recorded remarks, was among the short list of speakers who praised Feinstein at the private memorial service outside San Francisco City Hall. Vice President Kamala Harris, herself a product of San Francisco politics, and other national leaders spoke in person to send off the first female mayor of San Francisco and longest-serving woman in the U.S. Senate.“She was always tough, prepared, rigorous, compassionate. She always served the people of California and our nation for the right reasons,” Biden said. “God bless a great American hero. She was something else, and she was a dear friend.”| Video Below | Sen. Chuck Schumer recounts when Sen. Dianne Feinstein broke her ankle and kept workingThe service marked the end of two days of events in the city that launched Feinstein’s political career amid tragedy. Hundreds of everyday people streamed into City Hall on Wednesday to pay their respects to the woman who shattered numerous glass ceilings.On Thursday, it was time for national leaders and Feinstein’s family to share tributes to the woman they knew. They did so with personal and warm anecdotes that reflected Feinstein’s kindness, wit, and passion for the city in which she was born and raised, California and the country.Eileen Mariano recalled how Feinstein, her grandmother, created the AMBER Alert program and protected California’s deserts. But she was also a woman who hated losing at chess, cut hair crookedly and sang Mariano to sleep with “You Are My Sunshine.”| Video Below | Full address: Dianne Feinstein’s granddaughter speaks out at memorialShe taught Mariano to put in the work and to keep going no matter what.“That, and she would also say to me, if you ever go out of town, no matter where you’re going, it doesn’t matter if you’re going to a city or the desert or a beach or the mountains, always pack a black pantsuit. There is no occasion to which you can’t wear a black pantsuit,” Mariano said.About 1,500 people were invited to the private memorial, where two large outdoor screens showed photos of Feinstein over the years. Guests seated in white chairs sweltered on an unseasonably hot day as the U.S. Navy Blue Angels flight team soared overhead, occasionally interrupting speakers with the roar of their jets.The flight demonstration squadron is in the city as part of Fleet Week, an annual San Francisco celebration started by Feinstein in 1981 when she was mayor. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a former San Francisco mayor, and former Gov. Jerry Brown were in the audience, though neither offered remarks. Feinstein was the officiant at Brown’s 2005 wedding to his wife, Anne Gust, a matchmaking effort referenced by former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, another San Franciscan, in her remarks.More than three dozen U.S. senators and representatives attended the service.Several speakers reflected on Feinstein’s dedication to the job.Harris said after she was sworn in as a U.S. senator, Feinstein congratulated her with a glass of California chardonnay and a binder full of her legislative initiatives.| Video Below | Vice President Kamala Harris pays tribute to Sen. Dianne Feinstein The vice president also recalled being a young prosecutor on Nov. 3, 1992, when she drove from Oakland into San Francisco to celebrate Feinstein and Barbara Boxer winning election to the U.S. Senate — making California the first state to send two women to the chamber. Harris then reflected on her journey back to San Francisco for Thursday’s memorial, this time on Air Force Two. “Dianne, the women of America have come a long way. Our country has come a long way. And you helped move the ball forward and our nation salutes you,” she said. | Video Below | What is Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s political legacy?Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, meanwhile, recalled Feinstein fracturing her ankle on a walk in Lake Tahoe and, instead of going to the doctor, proceeding with a planned summit to talk about policy issues related to the prized natural resources straddling California and Nevada.He said one of his proudest moments was working with Feinstein to pass legislation banning the manufacturing and sale of certain types of semi-automatic guns. The legislation expired a decade later, in 2014. But he said he was also indebted to her as a father of two daughters.“Because of Dianne, my daughters grew up in a world that’s a little bit fairer, a little more just and more accepting of women in leadership,” he said.| Video Below | Full address: Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pays tribute to Sen. Dianne FeinsteinShe steered San Francisco through the HIV and AIDS crisis, bringing attention to an epidemic ignored by President Ronald Reagan. She also secured federal and private funding to save the city’s iconic cable cars from death by deterioration.Feinstein led the city as it played host to the Democratic National Convention in 1984. Another San Francisco tradition — “Fleet Week” — was started by Feinstein in 1981, and this year’s annual celebration of air shows, naval ships and military bands is dedicated to her.While Feinstein’s career sent her to Washington, she remained deeply involved in the affairs of San Francisco, the city where she was born and raised. She often called her successors — including Newsom — to complain about potholes or trash and to offer advice and encouragement.San Francisco Mayor London Breed recalled looking up to Feinstein when she was a Black kid growing up in public housing and playing the French horn in a middle school band that performed regularly at mayoral events.| Video Below | San Francisco Mayor London Breed speaks to Sen. Feinstein’s impact on her life and career“She was so proud of us and she said so, and she took the time to talk to us, express how amazing we were and to remind us that we were her band,” Breed said at a news conference the day after Feinstein’s death.She was president of the Board of Supervisors in November 1978 when a former supervisor assassinated Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk, the city’s first openly gay supervisor, at City Hall. Feinstein, who found Milk’s body, became acting mayor and won election twice to serve as mayor until 1988.Mourners Wednesday expressed their pride in Feinstein.“She kept moving on up. I was proud of her, very proud of her,” said Dorothy Hudson, 81, a retired federal government employee. “She was very kind, very smart. She opened doors up to let people know, ‘You can do it.’”San Francisco native Cari Donovan placed a bouquet of red and pink lilies and daisies on the floor before the casket. She lingered, crying quietly over a woman she never knew but who was so important to her life.“She championed and fought for the rights of so many people,” Donovan said. “I’m so grateful. And I really just wanted her family to know how much she meant to me.”The social worker said she talked to her 28-year-old daughter about the battles Feinstein fought so that younger generations of women could dream bigger. “She was a lioness.”
The late U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein was toasted Thursday at a memorial service as a leader with uncommon integrity and a defender of American values — as well as a talented artist and a grandmother who gave crooked haircuts in her kitchen.
President Joe Biden, who sent recorded remarks, was among the short list of speakers who praised Feinstein at the private memorial service outside San Francisco City Hall. Vice President Kamala Harris, herself a product of San Francisco politics, and other national leaders spoke in person to send off the first female mayor of San Francisco and longest-serving woman in the U.S. Senate.
“She was always tough, prepared, rigorous, compassionate. She always served the people of California and our nation for the right reasons,” Biden said. “God bless a great American hero. She was something else, and she was a dear friend.”
| Video Below | Sen. Chuck Schumer recounts when Sen. Dianne Feinstein broke her ankle and kept working
The service marked the end of two days of events in the city that launched Feinstein’s political career amid tragedy. Hundreds of everyday people streamed into City Hall on Wednesday to pay their respects to the woman who shattered numerous glass ceilings.
On Thursday, it was time for national leaders and Feinstein’s family to share tributes to the woman they knew. They did so with personal and warm anecdotes that reflected Feinstein’s kindness, wit, and passion for the city in which she was born and raised, California and the country.
Eileen Mariano recalled how Feinstein, her grandmother, created the AMBER Alert program and protected California’s deserts. But she was also a woman who hated losing at chess, cut hair crookedly and sang Mariano to sleep with “You Are My Sunshine.”
| Video Below | Full address: Dianne Feinstein’s granddaughter speaks out at memorial
She taught Mariano to put in the work and to keep going no matter what.
“That, and she would also say to me, if you ever go out of town, no matter where you’re going, it doesn’t matter if you’re going to a city or the desert or a beach or the mountains, always pack a black pantsuit. There is no occasion to which you can’t wear a black pantsuit,” Mariano said.
About 1,500 people were invited to the private memorial, where two large outdoor screens showed photos of Feinstein over the years. Guests seated in white chairs sweltered on an unseasonably hot day as the U.S. Navy Blue Angels flight team soared overhead, occasionally interrupting speakers with the roar of their jets.
The flight demonstration squadron is in the city as part of Fleet Week, an annual San Francisco celebration started by Feinstein in 1981 when she was mayor.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a former San Francisco mayor, and former Gov. Jerry Brown were in the audience, though neither offered remarks. Feinstein was the officiant at Brown’s 2005 wedding to his wife, Anne Gust, a matchmaking effort referenced by former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, another San Franciscan, in her remarks.
More than three dozen U.S. senators and representatives attended the service.
Several speakers reflected on Feinstein’s dedication to the job.
Harris said after she was sworn in as a U.S. senator, Feinstein congratulated her with a glass of California chardonnay and a binder full of her legislative initiatives.
| Video Below | Vice President Kamala Harris pays tribute to Sen. Dianne Feinstein
The vice president also recalled being a young prosecutor on Nov. 3, 1992, when she drove from Oakland into San Francisco to celebrate Feinstein and Barbara Boxer winning election to the U.S. Senate — making California the first state to send two women to the chamber. Harris then reflected on her journey back to San Francisco for Thursday’s memorial, this time on Air Force Two.
“Dianne, the women of America have come a long way. Our country has come a long way. And you helped move the ball forward and our nation salutes you,” she said.
| Video Below | What is Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s political legacy?
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, meanwhile, recalled Feinstein fracturing her ankle on a walk in Lake Tahoe and, instead of going to the doctor, proceeding with a planned summit to talk about policy issues related to the prized natural resources straddling California and Nevada.
He said one of his proudest moments was working with Feinstein to pass legislation banning the manufacturing and sale of certain types of semi-automatic guns. The legislation expired a decade later, in 2014. But he said he was also indebted to her as a father of two daughters.
“Because of Dianne, my daughters grew up in a world that’s a little bit fairer, a little more just and more accepting of women in leadership,” he said.
| Video Below | Full address: Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pays tribute to Sen. Dianne Feinstein
She steered San Francisco through the HIV and AIDS crisis, bringing attention to an epidemic ignored by President Ronald Reagan. She also secured federal and private funding to save the city’s iconic cable cars from death by deterioration.
Feinstein led the city as it played host to the Democratic National Convention in 1984. Another San Francisco tradition — “Fleet Week” — was started by Feinstein in 1981, and this year’s annual celebration of air shows, naval ships and military bands is dedicated to her.
While Feinstein’s career sent her to Washington, she remained deeply involved in the affairs of San Francisco, the city where she was born and raised. She often called her successors — including Newsom — to complain about potholes or trash and to offer advice and encouragement.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed recalled looking up to Feinstein when she was a Black kid growing up in public housing and playing the French horn in a middle school band that performed regularly at mayoral events.
| Video Below | San Francisco Mayor London Breed speaks to Sen. Feinstein’s impact on her life and career
“She was so proud of us and she said so, and she took the time to talk to us, express how amazing we were and to remind us that we were her band,” Breed said at a news conference the day after Feinstein’s death.
She was president of the Board of Supervisors in November 1978 when a former supervisor assassinated Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk, the city’s first openly gay supervisor, at City Hall. Feinstein, who found Milk’s body, became acting mayor and won election twice to serve as mayor until 1988.
Mourners Wednesday expressed their pride in Feinstein.
“She kept moving on up. I was proud of her, very proud of her,” said Dorothy Hudson, 81, a retired federal government employee. “She was very kind, very smart. She opened doors up to let people know, ‘You can do it.’”
San Francisco native Cari Donovan placed a bouquet of red and pink lilies and daisies on the floor before the casket. She lingered, crying quietly over a woman she never knew but who was so important to her life.
“She championed and fought for the rights of so many people,” Donovan said. “I’m so grateful. And I really just wanted her family to know how much she meant to me.”
The social worker said she talked to her 28-year-old daughter about the battles Feinstein fought so that younger generations of women could dream bigger. “She was a lioness.”
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