Photo courtesy Florida Senate.

Politics often gets a rap as a dishonest profession. Covering the field my whole adult life, I certainly have seen individuals exploit their position. But for the most part, I can tell you most people working in government and running for office do so as a calling.

That includes County Commissioner Nancy Detert, who died this week at age 78. Detert served as vice chair of the Sarasota County Commission. But before that, she served in the Florida House, Florida Senate and Sarasota County School Board. Her unexpected death rattled as many in Tallahassee as in Venice.

Frankly, there’s also plenty of people I spoke to this week who seemed at somewhat of a loss about what to say. That’s in part because Detert, for all her advocacy on behalf of community institutions, also never had problems smacking down the people she did not respect. People in the Capitol still recall watching her dress down officials in the Gov. Rick Scott administration as lightweights lacking the expertise to give lawmakers advice.

She was a master at the art of umbrage. She also could pull the levers of power in ways that made you wince. That seemed clear in redistricting efforts both at the state and local level. The former led to a state Senate map being tossed in part because it protected her district at the time.

But she was also a fighter on behalf of Florida’s foster children, a champion for organizations like the Loveland Center. The fact she was effective at pursuing her goals helped more people than it upset.

For a period of time, she and the Gulf Coast Community seemed the most prominent institutions that called Venice home. She demanded respect because that was important capital in the execution of her job. And at the end of the day, her job was to help the community. Her service will be remembered for a long time because of the positive legacy she left behind.

It will be seen in a Mote Aquarium and improved wastewater infrastructure. It will be seen in preservation of the environment around Celery Fields. It will be seen in employment programs with the state providing opportunities for disables workers. It will be seen in the success of every foster child befitting from care until age 21.

But for those who saw her work, it was her personal resilience and demeanor that will be most missed. Known in Tallahassee as one of the lions of the Senate, she represents in many ways the last group of strong individual lawmakers who shaped legislation to needs of her district instead of the whims of leadership.

She was considered a moderate and independent, a Republican who voted against malicious regulations on abortion clinics. But it’s not right to think of her less than a loyal Republican. She still was ready to give a fiery speech introducing a Republican presidential candidate in 2012 in Sarasota with condemnation of Barack Obama’s foreign policy.

Strong praise from Sarasota County Republican Party chair Jack Brill this week showed how beloved she was by GOP leaders.

“She is well-known and respected by people in both parties who agreed and disagreed with her,” Brill said. “Nancy did her homework, knew the issues and knew the people in her community. She was always an honest broker, doing what she believed was right, even if it hurt her politically.”

That willingness to act but with her constituents’ best interest at heart made Detert a respected leader, even in moments when she had to sacrifice some political love. That is what will be missed the most with her loss.

Jacob Ogles is contributing senior editor for SRQ Media.

Photo courtesy Florida Senate.