DALLAS — President Joe Biden plans to attend the wake Monday in Dallas for former longtime North Texas Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, the White House confirmed.
Johnson, who was first elected to represent Texas' 30th District in the House of Representatives in 1992 and held that seat for 30 years before her retirement in January 2023, died New Year’s Eve at 89.
A viewing at the Hall of State in Fair Park will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 8, followed by a wake at Concord Church at 8808 Pastor Bailey Drive in Dallas from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Johnson’s funeral service will be at 10 a.m. Jan. 9 at Concord Church. Finally, a graveside service for Johnson is set for 2 p.m. Jan. 10 at Texas State Cemetery in Austin.
Watch Johnson's lie in state live here:
"Throughout her life, and as the former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, she was an icon and mentor to generations of public servants, through whom her legacy of resilience and purpose will endure," Biden said in a statement after Johnson's death. "Jill and I send our love to her family, including her son Kirk and her grandchildren Kirk Jr, David, and James; to her many friends; and to the people of Texas’ 30th Congressional District, who were so fortunate to have her as their champion for so long."
Prior to serving in Congress, Johnson served three terms in the Texas Senate, where she represented Dallas County and the 23rd District from 1987 until she took national office in 1993.
Before moving to the Texas Senate, Johnson served as a member of the Texas House of Representatives and represented House District 33 from 1973 to 1977.
When she won that seat in 1972, she became the first Black woman elected to public office in the city of Dallas' history.
Later, as the leader of that chamber's Labor Committee, she would also become the first woman ever to lead a major Texas House committee.
Johnson's seat in the U.S. House was filled earlier this year by Rep. Jasmine Crockett, whom Johnson quickly endorsed after first announcing her retirement.
Outside of her public service, Johnson was the first Black woman to serve as Chief Psychiatric Nurse at the VA Hospital in Dallas, and she was the first registered nurse elected to the Texas House and Texas Senate.
In 2019, the DART board voted to rename Downtown Dallas' Union Station -- a major stop for the DART Rail's red and blue lines, as well as the Trinity Railway Express commuter rail line and Amtrak -- to EBJ Union Station in her honor. That same year, the City of Dallas voted to rename the physical property of Union Station to Eddie Bernice Johnson Union Station.