There are lots of folks around the Capitol and throughout Jackson that are mourning the loss over the weekend of Maria Becker. Maria fought a courageous struggle against cancer and handled it with the poise and class that she did everything else in her life.

Maria was a Millsaps graduate. I certainly knew her at Millsaps as someone who always had a warm smile and a kind word. She got her start in Mississippi politics working on the Amy Tuck campaign years ago. Since then, she was a fixture in the Capitol and worked with Capitol Resources firm here in Jackson.

Here is her obituary from the Clarion Ledger.

A trust fund for her 3 year old daughter Emma Claire has been established. Memorials, in lieu of flowers, should be directed to the Emma Claire Becker Trust Fund, c/o Miss. State Senate, P. O. Box 1018, The New Capitol, Jackson, MS. 39215.

The YP nation lost a friend. She'll be missed.