The family of the new Kansas attorney general, Stephen Six, has a long record of public service.

At age 42, Six is Gov. Kathleen Sebelius’ choice to finish the term of Paul Morrison, who has been forced from office by the scandal surrounding his extramarital affair. The governor not only picked a scholarly man with a spotless record who can help brush away some of the scandal of the recent past but an individual who has seen in his own family a long list of examples of how to serve the public well.

His grandparents, Deal and Gladys Six, moved to Lawrence in 1934. Deal Six served some 30 years as the productive, inventive and respected county extension agent until his death in 1971. Gladys was an outstanding teacher here and was noted for her activities in speech and theater programs.

She founded the Lawrence Children’s Theater in 1937 and, during World War II was persuaded to become a temporary teacher in the Lawrence public schools. She taught drama and civics for 22 years, and helped the Lawrence Community Theater buy and renovate a vacant church at 1501 New Hampshire which the group still calls home.

Gladys Six also found time to serve, and well, on the Lawrence School Board and won award after award for her teaching and dramatics endeavors. Other activities involved the recreation commission, the Girl Scouts, the Community Chest and countless stage events. She died in 1995 at the age of 99.

Her son, Fred Six, became a noted attorney and judge, retiring in the recent past from the Kansas Supreme Court. He and wife Lillian, also an attorney, are the parents of the new Kansas attorney general.

Sally Six Hersh, the late daughter of Deal and Gladys, learned well from her mother and became a school teacher with emphasis on drama, art and music. During her decades as a noted West Junior High teacher, she won more than 20 drama and teaching awards, including the Kansas Governor’s Scholar Teacher, Teacher Most Influential in Education of Students (twice), and West named its theater after her. She served actively on 18 committees in the local school district and belonged to 13 organizations, from the Lawrence Symphony Orchestra to the Helen Foresman Spencer Museum of Art here. Sally Hersh died in 2001 at age 68.

Another interesting note about this long-serving family is that Betsy, the wife of Stephen Six, is a lecturer at the Kansas University Law School and the daughter of local attorney Jack Brand and his wife, Barbara.

Lawrence, Douglas County and Kansas University have been blessed with many families who contributed broadly and well with good citizenship and major accomplishments. Deal and Gladys Six fostered such a family and the record of the Sixes is quite noteworthy, a heritage being perpetuated by the new attorney general.