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Former state Senate President Brady Adams dies Apr 07, 2015 12:00 AM A A Local report Former state Senate President Brady Adams died Monday in Grants Pass following a lengthy battle with Parkinson's disease. He was 70. Adams, a Republican known for keeping a tight rein on budgets, served eight years in the Oregon Legislature, rising to the top leadership post in the Senate for the 1997 and 1999 sessions. But he was better known in Josephine County for four decades as president and executive vice president of Evergreen Federal Bank and his community involvement. In a ceremony honoring him in 2012, Adams was credited with serving on 20 local nonprofit boards and creating more than 50 community projects, including the Bearfest celebration and other downtown art events. Adams moved to Grants Pass in 1972 as a loan officer, and became bank president in the mid 1980s. He worked his way through Portland State University as a vending machine supplier and earned a degree in marketing. Adams is survived by wife Patricia, son Ted, daughter Jennifer and a grandson. John Watt, a former Medford legislator who worked alongside Adams, said, “It gives me a great deal of pleasure to have known Brady. He was a great Oregonian.” Watt said he was stunned by the news of Adams' death at such a relatively young age. “Brady was totally devoted to his family,” he said. “He loved his wife beyond measure, and she loved him.” Adams was elected to office two years after Watt, and they ended up as roommates in Salem during the legislative session. “He ascended to leadership pretty quickly in the Senate,” Watt remembers. “When he set his mind to do something, he got it done.” When he wasn’t involved with the Senate, Adams was busy playing a pivotal role in improving downtown Grants Pass, Watt said. Watt said he fondly recalls his time with Adams during the legislative sessions. “He had never washed his own clothes before because his wife did it,” he remembered. “He had some challenges getting that work done, and it was pretty funny. He ended up taking most of it home on the weekends.” Watt said Adams was an avid fan of Theodore Roosevelt, amassing an impressive collection of first-edition books and writings of the 26th president, who famously said, "Speak softly and carry a big stick." “He always smiled, but was very serious about making the community and state a better place to live in,” Watt said. Among others paying tribute to Adams was U.S. Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., who was quoted in an email from his office as saying: “Seldom in our state's history has someone like Brady Adams come along. He coupled deep business experience with an even deeper compassion for those in need. He joyously improved people's lives while actively suppressing acknowledgement for his generosity and vision. He had trouble containing his ‘inner child’ and let it play out with bear villages and statues that enthralled children and employed artists. He served his state and community with utmost integrity and distinction, leaving both in much better shape. My prayers are with Pat and his family as we celebrate his life and mourn his passing.” “We lost a real statesman,” said state Rep. Sal Esquivel, R-Medford. “He was an outstanding man — just a gentleman.” Esquivel said he was on the Medford City Council when Adams served in the Legislature. “He was very articulate and had a strong care in his heart for Oregon,” Esquivel said. State Rep. Carl Wilson, who served with Adams in the Legislature, told the Grants Pass Daily Courier that Adams had many facets. “A lot of folks see Brady as the public benefactor he was, and they didn’t know him in any other position,” said Wilson. “The fact was, he was a great banker and a really tough-minded officeholder. He was very firmly established in his beliefs in the free enterprise system and the lack of overleaning bureaucratic regulation. He really represented our values well. But he made a wonderful transition in the public life.” Former state Senate President Brady Adams dies