Welcoming the Honorable Celeste Maloy to the House of Representatives

Floor Speech

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Mr. CURTIS. Mr. Speaker, as the dean of the Utah delegation, I have the distinct honor to rise today to introduce the newest Member of the House of Representatives, Celeste Maloy. Celeste was born in southern Utah, raised in rural Nevada, and then, as an adult, chose Utah as her home. Celeste earned an agricultural degree from Southern Utah University in Cedar City which she now calls home.

She began her career in public service as a soil conservationist at the USDA in Beaver, Utah, also located within her district, where she worked for 10 years.

She left Beaver to go to law school at BYU, where she got her law degree, in my hometown, and she was a law student there, in fact, while I was her mayor.

Since beginning her late career, she has worked as a deputy county attorney, a public lands attorney for the Utah Association of Counties and, most recently, as the chief legal counsel to former Congressman Chris Stewart.

In a special election, Celeste assembled a coalition of both rural and urban voters. She was unafraid to stand for conservative principles, calling for debate in each of her 13 counties. In her district, she is known to be a hard worker, levelheaded, and consistently conservative.

We were all a little surprised that she won the election since the last thing she won was her 7th grade spelling bee, but the secret to her heart is simple: offer her a Dr. Pepper and her number one food staple, cottage cheese. Better yet, ask her about her 90-year-old grandmother, who is her biggest political fan and best critic, or her other grandmother who was her roommate when she was in high school and they worked at the same truck stop.

She is the fourth of six kids--this is how we do families in Utah-- which means that most of her life she has been in a bunk bed.

Finally, my colleagues will remember her predecessor, Chris Stewart. He was known for having several speed records around the world in his plane. Celeste does not have a flight speed record, but I hear, unbeknownst to the Utah Highway Patrol, she has several speed records on I-15 in her district.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to yield to my fellow Utahn, Celeste Maloy.

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