[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 160 (Thursday, November 13, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2349-E2350]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO DEAN GORDON D. SCHABER

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ROBERT T. MATSUI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 13, 1997

  Mr. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the late Dean 
Gordon D. Schaber of the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of 
Law. Today, as Dean Schaber is remembered by his family and many 
friends at a memorial service in Sacramento, CA, I ask my colleagues to 
join me in saluting this extraordinary giant in the fields of law, 
politics, and community service.
  Gordon Duane Schaber was born 70 years ago today in Ashley, ND. Dean 
Schaber overcame a childhood bout with polio to excel at his academic 
pursuits. In 1938, he moved to Sacramento where he graduated from 
McClatchy High School as class valedictorian in 1945. He went on to 
graduate second in his class at Sacramento State College in 1949.
  Gordon Schaber found his calling in the legal profession early on. By 
1952, he had graduated with honors from the University of California, 
Hastings College of the Law. In a remarkable 5 years, Gordon Schaber 
became dean of McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento, making him the 
youngest law school dean in the nation at the age of 29.
  For the next 34 years, Dean Schaber served as the driving force 
behind McGeorge's transformation from a small, unaccredited night 
school to an internationally recognized leader in the field of legal 
education. This evolution of McGeorge from an institution with a low 
academic profile to world prominence is owed to the tenacity and 
dynamism of Gordon Schaber.
  While fulfilling his duties at McGeorge as an energetic 
administrator, teacher, and mentor to scores of law students, Dean 
Schaber also served as the presiding judge of the Sacramento Superior 
Court from 1965 to 1970, the youngest person to ever hold that post. 
During this same time, he guided McGeorge through its accreditation 
from the California Bar in 1964, and its historic merging with the 
University of the Pacific in 1966.
  McGeorge's 9,000 alumni include 160 judges, many members of the 
California Legislature, district attorneys, city attorneys, and a 
member of this House. Dean Schaber's proteges represent the very best 
in the American legal community, including the Honorable Associate 
Justice of the United States Supreme Court, Anthony M. Kennedy.
  Yet Dean Schaber's influence extended far beyond our nation's lawyers 
and legal scholars to include a bi-partisan collection of five 
governors of the State of California, as well as Presidents John F. 
Kennedy and Ronald Reagan. His intelligence, deft political abilities, 
and wit made him a friend and confidant to many of our nation's 
greatest leaders.
  As a loving uncle and son, Gordon Schaber was always committed to 
nurturing the fabric of his own family. He had a very special 
relationship with his nephew, Randall Schaber, for whom he became a 
surrogate father after his own brother's untimely passing. Of course, 
Gordon Schaber treated his hundreds of friends as family members; his 
retirement and birthday celebration in 1992 drew over 800 people in a 
living tribute to the breadth of his influence and community 
involvement.

[[Page E2350]]

  At that time, he was named ``Man of the Year'' by the Sacramento 
Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, the same organization which had 
recognized him as ``Young Man of the Year'' some 30 years earlier. In 
1991, Dean Schaber received the American Bar Association's highest 
honor for service in legal education, The Kutak Award.
  Mr. Speaker, Gordon Schaber's intellect, generosity, and good will 
made him one of Sacramento's most respected and loved citizens. His 
selfless devotion to McGeorge School of Law, his family, and friends 
has set the standard for community service in our State and in our 
Nation. As Dean Schaber is remembered at today's memorial service, I 
ask each of my colleagues to join me in recognizing his exceptional 
life's work and tremendous spirit of purpose in the community he loved 
so well.

                          ____________________