It is with sadness that I would like to express condolences to the family of Melanie Goodwin upon her death on Tuesday. We entered the N.C. House of Representatives together as freshmen members in 2005 and quickly became friends. Her door, mind and heart were always open to colleagues and constituents alike as she worked tirelessly to attack problems facing the state and its people. She was the first sitting House member in North Carolina to give birth while in office, and later continued her public service on the N.C. Industrial Commission. Her compassion for others was exemplified as an attorney, passionately representing domestic violence victims in court.
Melanie’s passing reminds us that people too often die twice — once when their spirit leaves the confines of Earth, the second when the last living person on Earth remembers who they were. I am confident her legacy as a spouse, mother and public advocate will be timeless.