Clarification: Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern was referring to the position on CCW staked out by many Democratic urban lawmakers when he said DeBose sometimes took positions independent of his party.

When former State Rep. Michael DeBose came into the state Legislature in Columbus, he remembered the people in Cleveland who put him there. He’d often champion the needs of the poor, sick and minorities who lived in his district.

He used his special brand of humor to caution state lawmakers about raising campaign contribution limits because he feared more money would limit access for poor Ohioans.

"In my district, you don’t donate $250,000. That’s an investment," Debose said. "People want a return on their investment.  And that return generally is access. They want to get access to legislators to hear their bills, their issues and their concerns. And the Bible says, ... in Proverbs, it says money is the answer of all things. And money may not be No. 1 but it’s way out in front of whatever is No. 2."

DeBose was an ordainedminister at the Zion Chapel Baptist Church.

Man of peace
He was generally a calming presence in the Legislature. But there were times when his passion was clear, as in 2005 when lawmakers were passing a bill that made cuts in a program for people with medical disabilities. Still DeBose called for cooperation.

"This is not a Republican issue or a Democratic issue," DeBose said. "It’s not a black or white issue. It’s not a male or female issue. This is a human issue. This is a people issue. People are suffering from this. And now, we have the opportunity to reverse some suffering."

During his last couple of years as a state lawmaker, it was evident that DeBose’s oratory skills were suffering somewhat because of his battle with Parkinson’s disease. But that didn’t stop him from making his voice heard. In 2010, one of the last bills he championed--a bill to make it illegal to text while driving--passed the Ohio House.

"If the people on the other side of the aisle say “no,” I understand that and this is a political situation," DeBose said. "You’d rather have politics than an understanding of what’s on the road."

Refern says his positions sometimes conflicted with fellow Dems
Ohio Democratic Party Chairman Chris Redfern served with DeBose in the Statehouse. He says DeBose was a friend and principled lawmaker who wasn’t always in step with his party.

"A lot of people don’t realize Mike DeBose was one of the few legislators from the big cities that actually believed in concealed carry," Redfern sayss. "He went through training and received his permit and it happened after he was assaulted in front of his house. He thought that maybe he needed to learn more about it. ... He did it because it was what was important to his district and what was important to him."

DeBose ended his legislative career in 2010 because of term limits.

Redfern says during those years, DeBose practiced what he preached.

"If we look back at Michael’s legacy, it won’t be the number of bills passed," Redfern says. "It will be the number of times he stood up and talked about what mattered to him, and that is the people who often times don’t have a voice."