Conservative leaders gathered from around the country Tuesday evening to salute former Sen. Jesse Helms, hailing him as a historic trailblazer and attributing much of their current political success to him.

The candlelit ballroom dinner at a suburban Washington hotel drew 500 people, among them a broad range of conservative glitterati from columnist Bob Novak to the Rev. Jerry Falwell and former U.N. ambassador Jeane Kirkpatrick.

North Carolina's current senators, Republicans Richard Burr of Winston-Salem and Elizabeth Dole of Salisbury, joined Republican Reps. Sue Myrick of Charlotte, Robin Hayes of Concord and Patrick McHenry of Cherryville at the dinner.

"In 1978, the Raleigh News & Observer dubbed Senator Helms 'Senator No,' " said Dole, whose husband, former GOP presidential candidate Bob Dole, led Senate Republicans during the heart of Helms' tenure in the chamber.

"And indeed he said no - no to high taxes, no to big government, no to enemies of freedom around the world, no to those who would undermine the culture of life and the sanctity of marriage," Dole said.

As the audience gave him a sustained standing ovation, Helms saluted and blew kisses toward Dole.

Helms, 83, retired in 2003 after a 30-year congressional career capped by a lengthy stint as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a post he had long desired and finally attained in 1994 when Republicans gained control of Congress.

The dinner also featured a video message from President Bush, who ticked off a long string of Helms' activities and accomplishments: his opposition to abortion and various arms treaties, his support for anti-communist movements in Eastern Europe and Cuba, his sponsorship of legislation calling for regime change in Iraq under Saddam Hussein.

"When Jesse Helms came to Washington in 1973, conservatives were a lonely crowd in Washington," Bush said. "But over the course of three decades in the Senate, the world moved in his direction."

In addition to celebrating Helms' storied career, the dinner marked the recent Random House publication of his memoirs, "Here's Where I Stand," and it raised money for youth programs at the Jesse Helms Center in Union County, outside his native Monroe.

GlaxoSmithKline, R.J. Reynolds and Ford Motor Co. were among the dinner's corporate sponsors, while the Family Research Council, the National Rifle Association and the Heritage Foundation joined other conservative groups in making large contributions.

Helms has endured serious health problems in recent years. He underwent open-heart surgery in 2002 to replace a worn-out prosthetic heart valve. Last year, he was hospitalized for five weeks with acute gallstone pancreatitis complicated by a bloodstream staph infection. He previously had undergone knee replacements, four coronary bypass grafts and radiation treatment for prostate cancer.

(Staff writer Rob Christensen contributed to this report.)