Rep. Ed Case (D-Hawaii) is sponsoring legislation to name a post office in Pa’ia, on the island of Maui, after the late Rep. Patsy Mink (D-Hawaii). [IMGCAP(1)]

“It has been seven months since the tragic loss to Hawaii, our nation, and this body of my predecessor, the Honorable Patsy T. Mink,” Case wrote in a “Dear Colleague” letter seeking co-sponsors for his bill. “The people of Maui — and indeed of all Hawaii — have a strong affection and deep admiration for the late Congresswoman Mink,” Case wrote.

“It would be a wonderful tribute for this Congress to have this post office, located in the area where she spent her formative years, named in her memory.”

Mink, who died last September at the age of 74 after a battle with pneumonia, grew up in Hamakua Poko, a village near Pa’ia on the north shore of Maui, where her father was a surveyor.

She served in Congress from 1965 to 1977 and from 1990 until her death last year.

— Amy Keller