CARSON CITY-With the death of longtime Clark County Democratic Chairman Charlie Waterman today at 79, Clark County Democrats are left remembering a mentor, a leader and a champion of the underdog.

"He was really somebody special," said Clark County Democratic Chairman John Hunt, whose friendship with Waterman stretched back more than twenty years.  "He's always been such a fixture within Nevada and the Democratic Party."

"The best part about Charlie was that he was so passionate and so committed to helping people.  I knew him as a lawyer long before the politics and he always fought for the underdog.  He was controversial because he wasn't one to back down.  He didn't shy away from a fight, he always stayed focused and always had time for everyone.  He was fiery and some people thought he could sometimes be hard, but that was one of the things I loved about him."

"He was Charlie.  He was a leader.  He gave us great leadership especially during the thin times when it was tough to be a Democrat in Nevada.  He made us all feel that it was the right thing to do and never give up.  His speeches were renowned.  He was so articulate because he was so passionate."

Among Hunt's favorite recollections about Waterman was the political radio talk show he hosted for a number of years earlier in the decade.

"It was kind of like on the other spectrum since the right is so well taken care of, Charlie went on the airwaves to give the other perspective," said Hunt.

Las Vegas attorney Thomas Pitaro, who, like Waterman, hailed from Massachusetts, hosted that radio show with Waterman and remembers him as an "old-time liberal."

"He believed government had a responsibility to help people and the function of government was to make society better," said Pitaro.  "He dedicated his adult life to that."

"Charlie wasn't afraid to give the other side hell.  He was very vocal about his beliefs.  The one thing he believed in was that you've got to take care of the people who couldn't take care of themselves."

Pitaro ascribed Waterman's political activism largely to his service in the Navy and the education he received under the G.I. Bill.

"He was very proud to be an American," said Pitaro.  "He saw how government could help people and he saw the good things it could do and he was a recipient of it."

Clark County and State Central Committee member Johnathan Abbinett recalls Waterman's help in organizing the Clark County Democratic Veterans and Military Family Corps Caucus.

"He took me to lunch and offered his friendship and his decades of experience and his mentorship," said Abbinett.  "We got a set of bylaws done and got it formally started and it wouldn't have happened without Charlie's guidance and blessing and support." 

Abbinett, like Hunt, saw Waterman last just Saturday, when Waterman attended the Apr. 12 Clark County Democratic Convention re-vote.  Abbinett credited Waterman for his spirit of hard work and activism.

"He was the kind of guy who didn't just talk the talk and then sat back and warmed a chair," said Abbinett.  "He did it all.  He got out there and knocked on doors and knew his neighbors and put up signs.  He knew what it took to build a field organization and get out the vote.  At every level of politics, he was a master."

Funeral arrangements for Waterman are pending.  Pitaro will be hosting an event to remember him this Sunday.