Sen. Daniel Inouye issued a statement in remembrance of Jon Van Dyke, the well-known Hawaii constitutional law professor who died on Tuesday.

Inouye called Van Dyke a legal scholar “of the first order,” and commended his work as a “tireless advocate for Native Hawaiian and civil rights.”

“What Jon Van Dyke meant to the thousands of students who he taught and mentored through his work as a professor at the William S. Richardson School of Law can never be quantified,” Inouye said. “For 35 years he has helped to build and shape the legal minds of generations of attorneys… But above all, Jon was a good man, possessing a sharp wit, a ready smile, and aloha for all.”

Rep. Mazie Hirono also issued a statement, saying that she will “always be grateful” for Van Dyke’s friendship and his service to Hawaii: 

“We cannot reflect on the state of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders’ rights without finding Jon at its heart,” Hirono wrote. “His passion, depth of knowledge, and dedicated advocacy is an example of Hawaii at its finest.”