Sirens wailed throughout Delaware as members of the state National Guard met the body of Beau Biden at Legislative Hall Thursday.
A flag-draped casket held Biden’s body as it lay in repose in the state Senate chamber.
Vice President Joe Biden, Second Lady Jill Biden, Beau’s wife Hallie, son Hunter, daughter Natalie and other members of his family greeted state lawmakers and officials in a private ceremony before being opened to the public.
“Because of what Beau Biden did in this very building, the children of Delaware are safer for generations to come,” said Gov. Jack Markell (D). “Beau had an extraordinary heart, and from that heart he lived a life that is a model for us all.”
Markell presented the Delaware Conspicuous Service Cross, the highest award the state can give, to Biden posthumously.
“The Biden family is Delaware’s family and Beau’s dedication to and love for you and your dedication and love right back is what we all want for our own families.”
The elder Biden frequently stared at the floor while several speakers eulogized his son, occasionally wiping away tears.
Former Chief Justice Myron Steele noted the somber weather, with raindrops falling in Dover as the family moved into Legislative Hall.
“It’s a genuine privilege for me to be able to speak today. A dark grey day outside, and I believe there’s a dark and grey spot in the hearts of all Delawareans this day,” Steele said.
House Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf (D-Rehoboth Beach) spoke to the statewide mourning of Biden.
“If I mention one word, just say one word, Beau, anywhere in this state, everyone would know immediately who I was talking about," said Schwartzkopf. "It reveals the strength of your family’s commitment to each other and your family’s commitment to public service to the people of Delaware.”
Beau inspired many to seek a life of public service when he was first elected as attorney general in 2006, according to current AG Matt Denn (D).
“They came to the Department of Justice in spite of other opportunities they had to earn more money and work fewer hours. Many of them came there because of Beau, because they believed in him personally and they stayed because he vindicated their faith in him by his actions,” Denn said.
The line of well-wishers began to dip as the event closed at 5 p.m.
After standing near Beau's casket for the entire afternoon, the vice president and the second lady worked their way through the crowd of people still in line, thanking each of them for coming.
"I'm going to go all the way around," he told others who reached from the back of the line to shake his hand.
One man said his father knew the vice president. "You look like your dad," Biden responded.
Karen Minner, of Smyrna, greeted the vice president in the lobby. "He's just a class act, whether you agree with his politics or not," Minner said. "And it's Delaware. We're all family."
Gina Scanlon, of Rehoboth, shook hands with the vice president. "It was very impressive," Scanlon said of Biden greeting members of the public in the lobby. "But that's the way he is."
Both left in Biden's motorcade around 5:10 p.m.
Beau Biden's casket left the Senate chamber and Legislative Hall around 5:30 p.m.
Biden, 46, died after a battle with brain cancer Saturday at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.
He had a small lesion removed from his brain in August 2013 at a Texas cancer hospital. Before that, he suffered a mild stroke in 2010.
Biden served two terms as Delaware’s attorney general and had been considering a run for governor in 2016.
Three further services are planned to remember Biden over the next two days.
President Barack Obama will delivery a eulogy at a Saturday Mass ceremony in Wilmington.
Material from the White House press pool was included in this report.
