Kip Klein, a Marietta attorney and pioneer in the Georgia GOP ranks when he served in the Legislature from 1991 to 1997, has died. He was 63.
Life changed for Klein, who represented what at the time was District 39 in Cobb County, shortly after he ran for the Republican nomination for attorney general in 1998. He was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease – the degenerative, neuromuscular disorder that also afflicts actor Michael J. Fox and ex-boxer Muhammad Ali.
Edward William Klein III, known as Kip by nearly everyone, died Monday of complications from Parkinson’s disease, said his daughter Shannon Klein of Washington, D.C.
Services are planned for 3 p.m. Friday at the First Baptist Church in Woodstock.
Though Klein’s bid for attorney general was unsuccessful, he was beaten by David Ralston of Blue Ridge who was defeated by Democratic incumbent Thurbert Baker. Still, Klein remained politically active. He and his wife Sharon began working with U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson – a close friend of the couple – on a compromise that would allow research using select embryonic stem cells, which had been severely restricted by President George W. Bush.
Ralston, who went on to become House speaker, said Klein “embodied the very meaning of worthy adversary.”
“I will forever remember his kind spirit and tenacious will, his passion for the ideas in which he believed, yet respect for those who disagreed with him,” he wrote in an email. “The integrity and dignity he brought to public service are qualities that are becoming all too rare in today’s political climate.”
In addition to his daughter, survivors include his wife of 36 years, Sharon Klein of Marietta; daughters, Tate Ferguson of Dallas, and Brittany Hunter of San Jose, Calif.; brother, Danny Klein of Newnan; step mother, Winifred Klein of Atlanta; step sister, Caroline Alford of Rome; step brothers, Dan Boone of Spring Island, S.C., Major Boone of Marietta, Carl Boone of Florida, Bill Boone of Atlanta, and Bob Boone of Pinehurst, N.C.; and one granddaughter.
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