Retiring Fort Worth-area U.S. Rep. Kay Granger experiencing ‘health challenges’
Retiring U.S. Rep. Kay Granger, a Fort Worth Republican, is experiencing “health challenges,” the longtime congresswoman said in a Sunday, Dec. 22 statement.
The statement follows a Dec. 20 article from the website The Dallas Express reporting that Granger, 81, is in memory care. A spokesperson for Granger’s office said the congresswoman is not in memory care.
Reached by the Star-Telegram, Granger’s son Brandon Granger in a text declined to comment beyond what he told The Dallas Morning News in an interview.
Brandon Granger told The Dallas Morning News on Sunday that Rep. Granger has been “having some dementia issues late in the year.” He said she is residing at Tradition Senior Living in Fort Worth but is not in memory care. The luxury senior apartments have independent, assisted and memory care living options. Granger is in the independent living facility, her son told the Dallas Morning News.
Granger moved to be in a more active community of other older people, Brandon Granger said, according to The Dallas Morning News.
“There’s nothing wrong with someone wanting to live in a community with other folks their age,” he said. “She’s in a building with a lot of other folks her age that are super active that she really loves. She has exercise classes, she gets to be around people all the time, it’s wonderful for her for this point in life.”
Rep. Granger in a written statement said she’s grateful for the “outpouring of care and concern over the past several days.”
“As many of my family, friends, and colleagues have known, I have been navigating some unforeseen health challenges over the past year,” Granger said. “However, since early September, my health challenges have progressed making frequent travel to Washington both difficult and unpredictable. During this time, my staff has remained steadfast, continuing to deliver exceptional constituent services, as they have for the past 27 years.”
Granger’s other son JD Granger, the former head of the Panther Island Project, confirmed that she’s not in a memory care facility.
“She enjoys the company, and she’s been doing well there,” he said in a brief call.
Granger announced in Nov. 2023 that she was not seeking reelection. Incoming Rep. Craig Goldman, a Fort Worth Republican, won the election to her District 12 seat, which includes parts of Tarrant and Parker counties.
She became the first Republican woman to represent Texas in the U.S. House of Representatives when she took office in 1997, and previously served as House Appropriations Committee chair. After rising the ranks, she was tapped for the appropriations chair role in January 2023 and announced in March she was resigning from the leadership post.
Granger previously served on the Fort Worth City Council and as Fort Worth’s first woman mayor.
Granger said she returned to Washington in November for meetings, to thank her staff and to oversee the closure of her Washington office. She has not voted on bills in recent months.
Rep. Kay Granger’s full statement
Read Granger’s full statement:
“I am deeply grateful for the outpouring of care and concern over the past several days.
As many of my family, friends, and colleagues have known, I have been navigating some unforeseen health challenges over the past year. However, since early September, my health challenges have progressed making frequent travel to Washington both difficult and unpredictable. During this time, my staff has remained steadfast, continuing to deliver exceptional constituent services, as they have for the past 27 years.
In November, I was able to return to DC to hold meetings on behalf of my constituents, express my gratitude to my staff, and oversee the closure of my Washington office. It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve the city of Fort Worth—as a city council member, as mayor, and as a Member of Congress.
Thank you for your continued prayers and support that you have extended to me.”
This story was originally published December 22, 2024 at 2:28 PM.
