On Dec. 11, Portland lost its last great mayor: Vera Katz died at 84. Katz, who ran Portland with vision and willpower, was remembered today by a spectrum of state and city luminaries. Jesse Katz, her son, in a statement:

“My mom was the embodiment of the American dream: coming with nothing and making a better life not just for herself but for the countless others she touched. While we miss her terribly, I know that her fearlessness, generosity and persistence will continue to shine light on our world.”

Elisa Dozono, former spokeswoman for Katz and now a partner at Miller Nash Graham & Dunn LLP, tells WW:

“I think about the times I would be out with her. She would talk to anybody. She talked to the homeless all the time. We’d be out on the streets, and she would talk to them. She would look them in the eye and ask them questions and show that she cared—that extraordinary ability she had despite being such an introvert—just her ability to connect with people, to take their problems as her own and decide to do something about it.

“Most people don’t know what an introvert she was. She just really spent a lot of time on her own processing things on her own. She didn’t like to do the schmoozing and everything. That just wasn’t her.”