Family, friends and officials to honor Mondale at University of Minnesota memorial

U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar's first job in Washington, D.C. wasn't particularly glamorous.

As a college intern for Vice President Walter Mondale, she was assigned an inventory of the office furniture, a task that involved writing down the serial number of every lamp, desk and chair.

"I learned then two things," the Minnesota Democrat said in an interview. "One, he was scrupulously honest — because nothing was missing — and two, I always tell students this: Take your job seriously. Because that was my first job in Washington, and this, as a U.S. Senator, was my second."

Mondale, who died last year at age 93, became a longtime mentor to Klobuchar as she went on to fill his Senate role and, like him, pursue the presidency. She is among the who's who of speakers — culminating with President Joe Biden — slated to memorialize Mondale's life at the University of Minnesota on Sunday.

His son Ted Mondale said in an interview that his father had been clear about the memorial he wanted: a local event with family, friends and colleagues. He wasn't interested in a gathering in Washington, D.C., or in lying in state.

"I feel like this is exactly the kind of event, the kind of remembrance he wanted," Ted Mondale said. "Hopefully big on the laughter, small on the tears — we'll see."

Though the memorial service will take place more than a year after Walter Mondale's death, "it's just as relevant as ever — in fact, it's more relevant," Klobuchar said.

"As our country stands with the democracy in Ukraine, as we really have to step back and reflect on what our country is all about as we come out of this pandemic, it couldn't be coming at a better time," she said, "because he truly was a model of decency and dignity in politics."

Mondale, known as "Fritz," was born in the small southern Minnesota town of Ceylon in 1928 to a music teacher and Methodist minister. After earning undergraduate and law degrees from the U, he began a rapid political ascent with two appointments five years apart: Minnesota attorney general in 1960, and U.S. senator in 1965.

In the Senate, the DFLer was a key figure in the passage of landmark federal civil rights laws, including the Fair Housing Act and Title IX.

"He was always fighting for the underdog," Klobuchar said. "So I don't think it's a surprise that he was so out there and really ahead of his time on civil rights, and I don't think it's a surprise that he wanted to elevate women. Because he knew when things were unfair."

As second-in-command to President Jimmy Carter from 1976 to 1980, Mondale transformed the role of vice president from one often relegated to a figurehead in the background to an active partnership in policy and decision-making.

In his own run for president, Mondale made history by choosing Geraldine Ferraro as his running mate — the first woman to run for vice president on a major party ticket.

For Klobuchar, the moment was unforgettable.

"I will never forget when he picked Geraldine Ferraro, and she stood out there in that red dress and white pearls next to him," Klobuchar said. "I was a young woman interested in politics, and I believed that anything and everything was possible from that moment on."

Mondale's life and decades-long political career were also marked by loss, from his landslide defeat to President Ronald Reagan in 1984 to the deaths of his daughter, Eleanor, and wife, Joan, before him.

But Mondale remained the family's anchor, Ted Mondale said, a constant fixture at grandchildren's sporting events and dinners at Rainbow Chinese or Spoon River. He maintained strong relationships until the end of life — even when that meant, in recent years, figuring out how to use Zoom.

On Sunday, Klobuchar said, she plans to emphasize her mentor's ability to rise up from the lowest lows.

"Even in the face of a major defeat, like that presidential race, he was grounded enough because he was always humble," she said. "His whole life didn't depend on, was he going to achieve the highest office of the land? So he was able to adjust, and in that way teach others how to adjust."

The invitation-only memorial service is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Sunday. Watch the livestream here.