People who live in cities sometimes had difficulty understanding proposals advanced by longtime state legislator Jake Flake.

But Flake, who died Sunday, was an articulate and respected voice for rural Arizona.

He was born, reared and, at the time of his death, still lived in the eastern Arizona town of Snowflake, named for and founded by Flake’s great-grandfather.

Flake’s service to Arizona was long and distinguished. He served in the state House from 1997 to 2004 and was speaker in 2003-04. He was elected to the state Senate in 2005, where he was serving at the time of his death.

With the rapid turnover in the Legislature forced by term limits, Flake’s institutional memory was valuable. He will be missed.

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