PHOENIX — Sen. John McCain’s life was full of vibrant stories and one Arizonan knows those stories well.
Marshall Trimble, Arizona’s official state historian, is now reflecting on the many years of knowing the Maverick.
“He was different, he was his own man. Much like Barry Goldwater, he just epitomized the spirit of Arizona," Trimble said.
Trimble taught Arizona history at Scottsdale Community College for four decades. That’s how long he's known John McCain. Trimble still remembers the first time he met the senator.
“I met him in 1982, a group of us took him out to the Superstition Mountains. We just wanted to introduce him to Arizona, he had just moved here. We put him on a horse and rode out to Weavers Needle and talked about the Lost Dutchman’s mine. He rode that whole day, didn’t complain and I thought, 'man this guy is tough,'" Trimble said.
Marshall still laughs about how quickly McCain was welcomed to the Grand Canyon State.
“John McCain was called a carpetbagger when he first came, but he really put it all to rest and shut them down when he said he had never lived in one place very long, he was in a military family. He said 'the longest time I ever spent in one place was the Hanoi Hilton, and that shut it off,'" Trimble said.
About a month ago, Marshall wrote McCain a goodbye letter.
“I told him I loved him, I’ve known him almost forty years, and I knew this was coming," Trimble said
The news of McCain's passing hit him hard.
“I didn’t handle it very well, when I went into my office, but I’m OK now," Trimble said.
Now, he can only reflect on the man that he knew so well.
“He did it his way, what I loved about him politically was he worked on both sides of the aisle. You always knew where you stood, much like Barry Goldwater, you didn’t have to wonder what side of the fence he was on, he gave it to you straight," Trimble said.
McCain was passionate about his work and sometimes had a temper, but Trimble often saw a different side.
“Something I really enjoyed about his company was his sense of humor, he could have been a standup comic," Trimble said.
It’s a "so long good friend" for now, but McCain’s spirit will live on forever.
“He’s left an imprint in Arizona that we will never forget," Trimble said.