[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 86 (Thursday, June 30, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 30, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                   TRIBUTE TO FATHER CAESAR CAVIGLIA

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I would like to take a few moments to 
reflect on the career and pending retirement of a very special man in 
the southern Nevada community.
  For the past 40 years, Father Caesar Caviglia, a native Nevadan, has 
devoted his life to helping people around him. He has done this, I 
believe, in a very unique fashion, exceptional in the way one would 
view the role of a priest.
  Caesar Caviglia got his calling early in life. Religion became the 
principal focus for young Caesar and, at the age of 18, he enrolled in 
St. Mary's College in Mortaga, CA. To further his religious 
convictions, he entered the seminary 4 years later and was ordained at 
the age of 27. He holds degrees in philosophy, education, theology, and 
economics.
  His education, as you can see, is quite impressive. His uniqueness, 
however, lies not in his education but in his ability to utilize his 
education and other natural abilities to garner support for projects 
and ventures that have changed the lives of those he serves. Father 
Caviglia was instrumental in securing a $1 million grant to build the 
Henderson Convention Center. He singlehandedly established the 
Henderson campus of the Community College of Southern Nevada. His love 
for senior citizens was realized in his creation of a meals-on-wheels 
program. I have named only a few projects he established to enlighten 
and nourish the community. It would take several Congressional Records 
to list his complete works.
  Commitment is the word that describes Father Caviglia's conduct in 
his ministry to, as he says, ``be involved with the people in the 
secular dimension of their lives.''
  Some call Father Caviglia a power broker because he has become a 
political force in Nevada for many years. He has become such an 
influential figure that politicians seeking statewide office actively 
seek his support. I know this because I am one of those who sought his 
guidance and support, and thankfully so. His involvement with the 
political community has always been with the honest interests of 
Nevadans in mind.
  Father Caviglia displayed his genuine concern for peace and humanity 
by playing a major role in blocking the MX missile project. He also 
became active in opposing the relaxation of Nevada's abortion laws. He 
saw these issues not as political, but as moral and spiritual. His 
actions are that of a guardian watching over a community he serves and 
cares deeply about. He has not restricted himself to the traditional 
role of a priest, but has moved throughout political and business 
worlds seeking to identify ways of improving the community's quality of 
life.
  Whatever issue confronts him, Father Caviglia never drifts from his 
religious convictions. His inner core of faith is what motivates him. 
These beliefs have been translated into labors of love. In his own 
words, Father Caviglia sees the church, ``as a fulcrum of change for 
the good.'' His brand of leadership is one of bringing the worlds of 
church, politics, and business together to forge a united path toward 
betterment as individuals and as a community.
  When one looks at the life of Father Caviglia, one sees a person who 
has sacrificed his life for the service of others, a man whose selfless 
actions made his neighborhood a better place to live. His smile is 
contagious, and he has made a lot of people happy. Despite his 
relationship with the rich and powerful, his goals are with everyday 
people. He has a genuine understanding of the plights of those isolated 
or in pain, and he devotes himself to unifying and healing.
  Father Caviglia's popularity is a product in no small part of his 
sense of humor and colorful stories, which he relates to audiences in 
eloquent fashion. In one chance meeting, it would be clear to anyone 
why Father Caviglia has endeared so many.
  As he looks forward to his retirement after 22 years as the shepherd 
of St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church, we should all be thankful for 
being blessed by a man who has accomplished so much for our community 
and, throughout it all, made us laugh. He has sacrificed his life for 
the benefits of others and has done so with a irrepressible, zestful 
spirit that makes him a spiritual role model and moral compass for us 
all. He once said ``Embrace life to the fullest. Grab onto it with 
intensity, with a passion. Because the real talent we read of in the 
Bible is the talent of life itself, the talent of a life well-lived.'' 
Those are the words of a man who loves life and loves people.

                          ____________________