University Daily Kansan, August 21. 1985
Page 10
Branson champions cause of the less fortunate
Staff Reporter
State representative Jessie Branson has a special interest in the needs of the mentally handicapped, because her son, Sammy, has been handicapped since birth. Branson helped found Cottonwood Inc., a Lawrenced based firm that hires the handicapped.
Jessie Branson sits at the dining room table in her home looking through stacks of mail from her constituents. She turns toward her son, Sam, who is studying a calendar.
"Say it, Sammy," Branson says, patiently prodding him. "He has trouble pronouncing his words."
She then leads her son out to the patio so he can watch his father, Vernon, mow the yard.
The tall, well-groomed 35-year-old man points out several holidays as he flips through the months. With a smile, he haltingly tries to tell his mother when some relatives' birthdays are.
Sam is mentally retarded. He lives in a group home in Lawrence and works at Cottonwood, 2801 W. 31st St., a workshop for mentally handicapped adults.
Sam's mental handicap has greatly affected Branson's life: "Because of Sammy I got involved in human services and programs that help those who are less fortunate," she says. That led her to politics, and the 64-year-old woman now represents the 44th District in the Kansas House of Representatives. The district includes the University of Kansas and the majority of the KU population.
The crusades of State Rep, Jessie Branson, D-Lawrence, in the Kansas Legislature have involved student rights, the University of Kansas Medical Center's Mid-American Poison Control Center, and funds for scientific equipment and library loans and acquisitions for KU. Branson also has provided to state aid for nursing homes, and mental health and retardation programs.
Branson says she probably would have continued in nursing — she's a 1942 KU graduate — had she not become involved in human services through Sam.
Chancellor Gene A. Budg says, "Representative Branson is a thoughtful legislator who has a special interest in the University of Kansas. She spends many hours learning about the University and its needs. In many ways she is an ideal public servant. She has a record of being most receptive."
"I often wonder," she says. "I would give anything not having him handicapped. We think we have learned a lot having Sammy. What he's taught us is some human values, how every human must be treated with love and respect."
She says that at the time Sam was born there were no services available in Lawrence for the mentally handicapped.
"There was so much stigma that many families kept them at home," she says. "When he was a little guy, he was very hyperactive. I can remember a dime store asking us to leave. They didn't know how to cope with it. You really feel rejected when you're asked to leave a dime store.
"Now I think we have a much more compassionate society."
Branson, who also has three daughters, says she was determined that Sam would be accepted and loved as a member of the family.
"Because that love prevailed, he's drawn us all closer," she says.
Friends and colleagues say she always has had a desire to make the quality of life better for others.
"I think she has a love for mankind," says Elaine Oruch, executive director of Douglas County Association for Retarded Citizens. "In her way, she does it by studying an issue extensively. She has a tremendous inner strength of commitment toward others."
David Berkowitz, chairman of the Douglas County Democratic Central Committee, says, "She not only has the desire to make the quality of life better for others, but she's extremely hard-working. She's very knowledgeable and educates herself on the issues. We're very lucky to have her represent us in the Legislature."
One example of her effectiveness was in helping to establish the Mid-American Poison Control Center at the Med Center. The service, staffed by three clinical toxicologists with access to a sophisticated laboratory, provides a 24-hour-a-day state and regional hotline to assist physicians and emergency room workers with poison victims. Patients with serious cases also can be flown in to the Med Center for treatment.
Two years ago Branson championed the need for increased financing of scientific equipment and library acquisitions. She brought Gov John Carlin to the campus for a day to point out the areas where KU was in need of books and equipment. She credits the visit with helping to bring an additional state grant of $360,000 for these acquisitions
And this year, she helped lead the fight to increase graduate teaching assistants' fee waivers from 60 to 75 percent. Her goal, she says, is to bring them to 100 percent. Fee waivers give GTAs a discount on their tuition. Her husband, Vernon, says, "Jessie enters into every endeavor ever done seriously. Everything is full steam ahead."
Naturally, the University remains her paramount concern as a legislator. But Branson acknowledges the political risks involved in representing KU students, who generally don't vote, and Lawrence residents, who do vote.
Branson points to the issue of raising the drinking age as such an issue. Branson says she received daily letters and petitions from people supporting the issue, mainly church leaders whoote predominantly. But she estimated that KU students who live in her district are affected by the new drinking age.
"Most of the time I feel like I'm sitting on a keg of dynamite in my district," Branson says. "If 10,000
students decide to vote me out of office they could do it easily. They would just have to register and vote."
Branson says she voted against raising the drinking age because it was unfair to young people to expect them to accept responsibilities and rights such as voting and say they couldn't drink 3.2 percent beer.
Nonetheless, for all the poucan risks in representing KU students, many of whom don't vote, Branson receives high marks from her legislative colleagues.
State Rep. Don Crumbaker, R-Brewster, chairman of the Education Committee, of which Branson is a member, says she is a hard-working, dedicated representative.
"Where she has expertise, she can express herself at the microphone quite well," Crumbaker says. "Jessie is a very intelligent, well-read person."
State Sen. Wint Winter Jr., RLawrence, wits Branson gets results
"Jessie goes full speed on the things she believes in and works on," Winter says.
Despite her record as a legislative go-getter, Branson says, she never had planned to run for the Legislature. But when the boundaries of the 44th District were redrawn for the 1980 election, the Democratic party approached her.
A lot of people thought it was an upset but I didn't. I figured I could win because I had lived in Lawrence a long time."
"The Democrats couldn't find anyone, absolutely one, to take the race," Branson says. "I guess they twisted my arm so hard. When I decided I could win, I finally said yes.
Branson has spent her 30 years in Lawrence involved with community activities that reflect her wide interests and concerns. She helped start many groups: the Lawrence Chamber Players, for which she has played the harpsichord; the Lawrence Warm Hearts, an organization that provides emergency assistance for low-income families; and the Douglas County Association for Retarded Citizens, organized just after Sam was born.
But always her primary concern has been for the handicapped and human services. Today, she is the ranking Democratic member of the
Public Health and Welfare Committee.
"I got concerned about the mentally retarded being dumped in nursing homes," she says. "The nursing homes were just making money off them because they are minimal care. But there really were no activities for them."
Branson was an original member of Kansans for Improvement of Nursing Homes, which was founded about 10 years ago. During the last legislative session she helped lead the fight against legislation that would have prevented the state Secretary of Health and Environment from enforcing a law requiring that nursing homes have a nurse on duty around the clock. Nursing homes now are only required to have
a nurse on staff during the day shift when acute care isn't involved.
Marilyn Bradt, legislative coordinator for KINH, says, "We cannot praise Jessie highly enough for her involvement in a wide variety of public health issues and of course nursing homes. Her general concern is for people, and above all, for those who can't advocate for themselves."
She says 24-hour nursing is needed because the new federal reimbursement plan caused hospitals to release to nursing homes some patients who were still in need of care.
"The profit-making, chain-ownership nursing homes were very opposed to it," Branson says. "One of their main arguments is that it will raise the cost for private paying patients. It will to some extent, but what it will amount to is $14 a month more. And for people who are sick, it's not only worth it, it's imperative they have it."
Branson says she thinks state programs that enhance the quality of life contribute toward making Kansas progressive.
"What we can do to help our leas able citizens contributes toward making our state progressive," she says. "The quality of life, whether you talk about mentally retarded programs or the arts, goes hand in hand with strong education programs. When an industry wants to locate, relocate or expand, these are the things important in economic development for the state."
Although Branson says she hasn't had much time to enjoy leisure activities since becoming a representative, she says music is her hobby and she tries to attend a concert a month.
When not doing legislative business in Topeka or going to a concert, Branson spends time with Sarn and her husband, who is a Lawrence pediatrician. The Bransons have two daughters who live in the Kansas City area.
Branson says that all of her daughters participated in her political campaign. "Now I find myself asking their advice and opinions on constituent concerns," she says.
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