Goodbye To Colleagues

GOODBYE TO COLLEAGUES -- (Extensions of Remarks - December 08, 2006)

* Mrs. LOWEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor four of my distinguished colleagues and to pay tribute to their dedicated work on behalf of the people of New York.

* I have been honored throughout my time in Congress to call Sherwood Boehlert, Major Owens, John Sweeney and Sue Kelly my colleagues and my friends, and their hard work and passion will be sorely missed by our great institution.

* Sherry Boehlert has been fighting for the people of the Mohawk Valley and Central New York since 1964, first as chief of staff to Congressman Alexander Pirnie and his successor Donald Mitchell and, for the last 24 years, as the representative of the 24th Congressional District of New York. Sherry has been a staunch advocate for environmental and science priorities including the space program, protection of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and research into global warming and cyberterror issues, and he has fought on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to secure New York's fair share of Federal funds.

* Sherry Boehlert epitomizes what a Member of Congress should strive to be--an independent, bipartisan consensus builder with loyalty not to outside interest groups or to party leadership, but to the constituents who sent him to Congress for over two decades.

* New York and the U.S. Congress have benefited for nearly as long from the service of Major Owens. Since succeeding the late Shirley Chisholm in 1982, Major Owens has successfully fought in Congress for increased educational opportunities, a higher minimum wage, equal opportunity for those with disabilities, and aid for historical black colleges. Major's voice will be missed, but his New York colleagues will remember him as we carry forward these important initiatives.

* It has also been my privilege to work with John Sweeney since his election to the House in 1998. As my colleague on the Appropriations Committee, as my co-chair of the Hudson River Caucus and as a leading voice for a risk-based approach to distribute Homeland Security funds, John Sweeney has proven himself not only dedicated to the people of his district, but to all the citizens of New York.

* We will miss Mr. Sweeney's lively spirit and the passion and expertise he displayed throughout his tenure.

* The New York delegation also wishes our colleague Sue Kelly well as she leaves the U.S. Congress. Through her roles on the Small Business and Financial Services Committees, Sue Kelly has successfully pushed to increase small business access to capital. As the chair of the Oversight and Investigation Subcommittee, she has paid careful attention to the efforts of law enforcement to crack down on terrorist financing and money laundering.

* Sue and I have stood united on many issues affecting our region, including Hudson River preservation activities and the proposed shift in services away from the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Montrose Campus of the VA Hudson Valley Healthcare System which serves veterans in both of our districts.

* Mr. Speaker, while Sherry, Major, John and Sue may not know yet what the future holds for them, there are two things I know for sure--the people of New York will miss them, and the House of Representatives is better for their service.

* I wish them all success and happiness in the days and years to come and am thankful for the opportunity to work with them and call them my friends.

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