Simpson laid to rest

POWELL — Very few funerals have featured more laughter than the ceremony for Alan K. Simpson Monday in Cody. “Big Al” would have liked that.

Hundreds of family members, friends and state leaders attended the former U.S. senator’s funeral, all having laughed at some of the dozens of Simpson’s jokes that were recounted at the pulpit of Christ Episcopal Church Cody.

“Half the fun of the joke is in the delivery. And nobody delivered a joke like Dad,” said daughter Sue Simpson Gallagher.

Simpson passed away on March 14 at the age of 93 after complications from breaking a hip in late December.

He kept his humor until the very end: After recently losing a part of his leg, Simpson remarked that he “was ready to give a stump speech,” son Colin Simpson recalled, to groans from the crowd.

Following earlier ceremonies in Cheyenne and Laramie, the service at Christ Episcopal marked the final celebration of Simpson’s life, this time in his hometown, which was packed with attendees.

His wife, Ann (Schroll), sat on the front row next to her daughter, Sue, and two sons, Colin and Bill. Al and Ann spent over 70 years together, having married on June 21, 1954. Al enlisted in the Army shortly afterward and served in the 5th Infantry Division in Germany.

Following his honorable discharge in 1956, Simpson headed to the University of Wyoming to earn his law degree. After joining the Wyoming Bar, Simpson joined his father, former Wyoming Gov. and U.S. Sen. Milward Simpson, and Charles G. Kepler in the law firm Simpson, Kepler and Simpson in Cody for 18 years, while also serving as city attorney for a decade.

Brother Pete Simpson told the crowd of the advice Al received from their grandfather, also an attorney, who advised that, “If anybody has to go to jail, make sure it’s your client.”

Al followed his father’s footsteps into politics, being elected to the Wyoming Legislature in 1964. He served for 13 years before winning a seat in the U.S. Senate in 1978.

He served three terms, rising to the role of Senate majority whip and being considered as a potential running mate for eventual President George H.W. Bush in 1988.

After leaving office, Simpson served as director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and then as a visiting lecturer for the University of Wyoming’s Political Science Department.

He then joined the law firm of Burg, Simpson, Eldredge, Hersh and Jardine with headquarters in Denver for the rest of his career.

His prominence was reflected by those who paid their respects in recent days. Wyoming’s full congressional delegation — U.S. Sens. John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis, Rep. Harriet Hageman and even former Rep. Liz Cheney, whom Hageman ousted — all spoke at a Saturday service at the University of Wyoming.

Other speakers in Laramie included the former AOL CEO Steve Case and Erskine Bowles, who served as President Bill Clinton’s chief of staff.

Throughout his career, Simpson loved meeting people and making friends, including people across the political aisle.

“He never met a person he didn’t like,” Pete said. “He had uncommon, unconditional generosity.”

Al’s 80-plus year friendship with the late Democratic Congressman Norman Mineta dated back to their childhoods and World War II, when Simpson was growing up in Cody and Mineta was incarcerated at the Heart Mountain internment camp. They met during a baseball game between camp detainees and the Cody Boy Scouts and maintained their friendship as they reached the highest rungs of government service.

President Joe Biden, who served with Simpson in the Senate, awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2022.

But for all of his achievements, Simpson remained firmly devoted to Cody and the surrounding area — and he was a proud resident of the Cowboy State.

He graduated from Cody High School and couldn’t think of living anywhere else, said son Bill Simpson.

“Dad, of course, had many things he did in high school. Some of them were actually legal,” Bill quipped.

Bill added that he was impressed with his father’s ability to make friends despite being a Republican politician.

“Dad certainly knew a lot of folks. And there were those who loved him, and frankly, there were those who didn’t. But that is life, and that is certainly politics,” he said. “I would like all those friends or foes to know that we greatly appreciate your involvement in his life. You gave him energy, you gave him drive, you gave him spirit and commitment.”

Simpson was a celebrity of sorts, yet the kind of celebrity who had as much fun meeting fans as they were him.

Colin Simpson, who escorted his father’s remains from the church, said part of his father’s charm was his belief that despite growing up privileged, he was just a regular guy.

“He understood that the privileges he had been afforded did not make him better than anyone else, and he worked hard to show people that he did not believe he was better,” Colin said. “Thank you, Dad, for sharing your wonderful gifts with us for so long, we will honor your life with ours.”

Country musician Clint Black sang music at Monday’s service, saying he never knew Simpson as a politician, “only as a stand-up comedian.”

As he tried picking a good tribute, the first song that came to mind was, “If You Won’t Be My Number One, Number Two On You,” Black quipped, but he opted for the more sincere, “Back Home in Heaven.”

Like every funeral, those in attendance came to say goodbye, or as Black said, “See you later, Al.”

This story was published on April 1, 2025.