[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 143 (Thursday, September 14, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13625-S13626]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                      WALTER A. HAAS, JR., FAMILY

 Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, I rise today to honor the Walter A. 
Haas, Jr., family for its years of community service to the people of 
the San Francisco Bay area. As owners of both the Oakland A's and Levi 
Strauss & Co., the Haas family has elevated community service to the 
highest level.
  The Haas family has been recognized over many years for the 
progressive corporate philosophy of Levi Strauss & Co. Levi Strauss has 
been heralded in publications from the San Francisco Chronicle to 
Fortune Magazine for its philanthropic work and community involvement. 
Today, I would like to recognize the Haas family for its dedication to 
the bay area through its ownership of the Oakland A's.
  On October 31, 1995, the Haas family will officially transfer 
ownership of the Oakland A's, ending a 15-year stewardship of one of 
the bay area's most beloved sports franchises. I join the A's in 
recognizing the Haas family for their contribution to the team, major 
league baseball, and the San Francisco Bay area.
  In 1980, Mr. Haas and his son purchased the Oakland Athletics ball 
club out of a sense of civic pride and duty. The previous owner had 
become convinced that the city of Oakland simply could not support a 
baseball team. When Walter Haas was initially contacted by community 
leaders about buying the team, he was not enthusiastic. He and his 
family had no experience running a sports franchise.
  But the Haas family's love of baseball and regard for the community 
prevailed. The Haas purchase of the Oakland A's began 15 years of care 
of a community baseball team that we rarely see in professional sports 
today. The Haas family philosophy emphasized civic pride--they believed 
that the A's were entrusted to them by the community for the benefit of 
Oakland A's fans, players, and bay area residents. The Haas family, in 
their love for baseball, dedicated themselves to the values of personal 
excellence, development of talent, and, most of all, to the fun of the 
game--all qualities that make baseball the quintessential American 
sport.
  In so doing, the Haas' brought over 3 million fans a year to the 
Oakland Coliseum and gave the bay area a resurgence of the former 
powerhouse team of the 1970's. The A's began their first season with 
the Haas family winning 11 games in a row and went to the playoffs. 
They were the American League champions 3 years in a row, from 1988 
through 1990, and won the 1989 World Series in the bay area's own 
Battle of the Bay World Series, punctuated as we all remember by the 
Loma Prieta earthquake.
  The Haas family has been recognized for bringing class and commitment 
to the Oakland A's team, as they have brought such dedication to all of 
their contributions to the San Francisco Bay area community. I am 
privileged to 

[[Page S 13626]]
stand in honor of the Walter A. Haas, Jr., family today.


                          ____________________