A lengthy profile of former House Speaker Dickey Lee Hullinghorst appeared last week on the Left Hand Valley Courier’s website, and it’s worth a read.

The former lawmaker from Boulder County didn’t break any news, but she got the media send-off from public office she deserved, the opportunity to share her philosophy from decades of service to Colorado from the left-hand side of the political debate.

“It was highly stressful, I will say, and me being at retirement age, anyway, there were times that I got very tired,” Hullinghost said in the article by Jesse Murphy.

“But it was also energizing. The causes we worked on were very important and I feel good about my time there.”

She should.

Lynn Bartels and I worked together on a profile of Hullinghorst in 2015, when she became the speaker of the House. I don’t think I can describer her now better than I did then.

The 5-foot-2-inch, 71-year-old Hullinghorst has a constant smile and a chipper tone of voice suited for anybody’s favorite aunt. But the Boulder Democrat’s nature also helps lower people’s guard and brings them to the negotiating table, friends and peers agreed.

I can tell you first-hand she was always courteous about posing for pictures with children who visited the Capitol, even if you had to do a double take to pick her out from the group.

Last June Hullinghorst received a lifetime achievement award from Conservation Colorado, the state’s largest environmental organization.

“It was a tremendous learning experience for me,” Hullinghorst told her local newspaper. “Being a very liberal democrat and environmentalist all of my life, I got a good perspective of folks who often are on the opposite side of those kinds of issues.”

The Courier reported that Hullinghorst and her family have been living in Gunbarrel Estates east of Boulder for 47 years. She was chairwoman of the Boulder County Democratic Party from 1975 to 1979 and later was the lobbyist for the environmental organization that would become Conservation Colorado.

She looked to the future.

“One of the things that I say to folks on the Democratic side of things is to not get discouraged,” Hullinghorst told the local paper. “There are a lot of Republicans who feel the same way, too, I’m sure. I’ve seen us go through a lot of crises in my time, but we will find a way to make this country work.

“It’s the strength of our Constitution and our democracy will carry us through regardless. Hang in there. Be optimistic, because we have a lot of resources to use. One of the most important is our people. We need to make sure young people stay involved, that they’re educated about the importance of their involvement and leave it to them. Fight for what you think is right, that’s your responsibility as a citizen of this country.”