DENVER — One of the last moves Rep. Dan Gibbs, D-Silverthorne, made before the close of his first legislative session was to introduce a memorial for former Rep. Bryan Sullivant, who died in Frisco last fall.

Gibbs and Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald, D-Coal Creek Canyon, co-sponsored a House Joint Memorial following a tradition to recognize former state legislators who have passed away.

“It’s a custom, and being a Summit County resident and the fact that he used to represent the same district that I represent too, it was a pleasure to do that,” Gibbs said.

Sullivant, 51, drowned last September after apparently falling into Dillon Reservoir while transferring between a dinghy and his sailboat moored at the Frisco Marina.

The Republican Sullivant served in the state House from 1994 to 1999 before he was appointed to the state Senate.

Sullivant was named House Freshman Legislator of the Year in his first term, and served as House Assistant Majority Leader in 1999. During his time at the Capitol, Sullivant introduced “a number of bills to manage growth by balancing state leadership with local decision making and economic development with the preservation of the state’s natural beauty,” the House Joint Memorial reads.

Gibbs invited former Speaker of the House Doug Dean and former Rep. Brad Young to speak about Sullivant on the day the memorial was read, while Sullivant’s family members listened.

The Memorial passed the Senate on third reading last Friday. A copy was sent to Sullivant’s daughter in Littleton.