When Proclamation 2014-08 came to a vote during the somber Barton County Commission meeting Monday morning, there was one very noticeable ballot absent.The proclamation passed in honor of Commissioner Don Cates who died in an agricultural plane crash last Tuesday. The action declared Monday Don Cates Day in Barton County.“I knew this morning was going to be a tough one,” Commissioner Jennifer Schartz said. “I came in and his chair was empty.”The process to replace Cates is in place, but “they may fill the chair, but they won’t fill my heart,” Schartz said.It was a solemn morning in the Commission chambers at the Barton County Courthouse as the death of county Cates cast a pall over the meeting.