WASHINGTON - Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) issued the following statement today regarding the death of former National Endowment for the Humanities Chairman Bruce Cole.

"Yesterday, our republic lost a devoted friend.

Bruce Cole dedicated his life to forming responsible and patriotic American citizens. Dr. Cole was the longest-serving chairman of the National Endowment of the Humanities, who served in that role from 2001 to 2009. He was a distinguished scholar of Renaissance art and a recipient of the Presidential Citizens Medal.

Dr. Cole believed in the power of civic education to unify Americans even in an age of doubt and division. At NEH he oversaw ‘We the People,’ an initiative to encourage all Americans to study the history and culture of their country. Later he helped launch Philadelphia’s inspiring Museum of the American Revolution, which tells the incredible story of how our nation was forged in war and spirit.

Dr. Cole also was a tireless promoter of beauty in the public square. He was a prominent critic of the dull and ugly fads that plague too many of our public spaces.Mr. Cole wanted Americans to love their surroundings as much as their country. Moreover, he wanted every American to embrace our shared cultural inheritance, the better to add to it in our time, and pass it along to posterity better than we found it. More than most, Bruce Cole did just that. He will be missed.”