Emerson's mother dies

WASHINGTON - A private funeral will be held today in Bethesda, Md., for Sylvia Hermann, the mother of U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Cape Girardeau.. Herman, 89, died Sunday.

Hermann had been active in Republican Party politics since she was a little girl, said Lloyd Smith, an aide to Emerson.

Her husband, Abe, was the chairman of the Republican National Committee in 1960. He preceded her in death in the 1980s.