Benjamin Eugene Vidricksen (June 11, 1927–September 14, 2015) was an American politician who served for over two decades as a Republican in the

Kansas State Senate The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of at least 60,000 inhabitants. Members ...

, from 1979 to 2000.

Personal life

Vidricksen was born on his family's farm near

New Cambria, Kansas New Cambria is a city in Saline County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 106. History New Cambria was named after Cambria County, Pennsylvania, the native home of an early settler. The first post ...

. After graduating from high school in 1944, Vidricksen served in the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Following his 16 months in the South Pacific, he returned to Kansas and enrolled in

Kansas Wesleyan University Kansas Wesleyan University is a private Christian university in Salina, Kansas. Founded in 1886, it is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. About 800 students attend KWU, with approximately 700 of them studying on the 28-acre campus. T ...

, earning a bachelor's degree in

pre-law In the United States, pre-law refers to any course of study taken by an undergraduate in preparation for study at a law school. The American Bar Association requires law schools to admit only students with an accredited Bachelor's Degree or its ...

in 1951. During this period, he met and married Lola Nienke; the marriage lasted until her death in 1992. After a stint working in

O'Neill, Nebraska O'Neill is a city in Holt County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 3,705 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Holt County. History O'Neill was platted in 1874. It was named for one of its founders, John O'Neill. O'Neill was ...

as a dairy manager, he returned to Kansas in 1958 to go into business with his brother Robert and their mother Ruby, owning and operating several restaurants in Salina and a

catering Catering is the business of providing food service at a remote site or a site such as a hotel, hospital, pub, aircraft, cruise ship, park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and r ...

business (his brother was inducted into the Kansas Restaurant Hall of Fame in 1980). He died in Salina.

Political career

In 1979, Vidricksen was appointed to fill the Senate seat of John Simpson, who had resigned to pursue a U.S. Senate run against

Bob Dole Robert Joseph Dole (July 22, 1923 – December 5, 2021) was an American politician and attorney who represented Kansas in the United States Senate from 1969 to 1996. He was the Republican Leader of the Senate during the final 11 years of his ...

. He won election in his own right during the 1980 elections, and spent the next two decades representing the 24th district, residing in Salina. During his time in the State Senate, Vidricksen served as Assistant Majority Leader for 16 years. Kansas Governor

Sam Brownback Samuel Dale Brownback (born September 12, 1956) is an American attorney, politician, diplomat, and member of the Republican Party who served as the United States Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom from 2018 to 2021. Brownba ...

credited Vidricksen as a key player in enlarging

Interstate 135 Interstate 135 (I-135) is an approximately auxiliary Interstate Highway in central and south-central Kansas, United States. I-135, which is signed as north–south, runs between I-35 and the Kansas Turnpike in Wichita north to I-70, ...

; a portion of the highway was named after Vidricksen in 2002.

References

Republican Party Kansas state senators Kansas Republicans Politicians from Salina, Kansas Businesspeople from Kansas American restaurateurs 20th-century American politicians United States Navy personnel of World War II 1927 births 2015 deaths {{Kansas-politician-stub