[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 1 (Tuesday, January 27, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E26]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO ROBERT ED STROTHER

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                           HON. BOB ETHERIDGE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 27, 1998

  Mr. ETHERIDGE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life time 
achievements of Granville County Commissioner Robert Ed Strother. 
Commissioner Strother died recently at the age of seventy-three. He 
touched countless lives in his community of Granville County as a 
devoted educator and public servant.
  Commissioner Strother's extensive career as an educator included 
serving as a school principal, county superintendent, and holding 
several high-ranking positions in the Department of Public Instruction 
and the Division of Community Colleges. Throughout his many positions 
as an educator from Wilton High School basketball coach to the North 
Carolina Department of Public Instruction, one thing remained constant 
for Strother: maintaining children as the top priority. He always had 
time to listen to a child.
  Since 1989, Commissioner Strother served as a Granville County 
Commissioner serving twice as Chairman of the Board. He represented his 
district well having the courage to fight on issues that were important 
to his community. His colleagues on the Board valued his ability to 
keep the Granville community informed on statewide issues. Commissioner 
Alligood recalls, ``He loved walking the halls of the legislature 
better than anybody I've ever seen. He kept us all informed of what was 
going on in Raleigh and how it affected local government.'' Strother's 
thoughtful manner and quick wit opened doors for him throughout North 
Carolina and he incorporated his experiences through the state into his 
service to the community.
  I first met Commissioner Strother while I served as Chairman of the 
North Carolina House of Representatives Appropriations Committee. He 
would walk the halls ``button-holing'' legislators almost weekly. 
Strother would stop in my office and remind me of the needs of his 
people in Granville County and of all the children in our public 
schools and community college system.
  I commend Commissioner Strother contributions to Granville County and 
throughout North Carolina. I feel fortunate to have known Robert Ed 
Strother as a colleague in education and public service, and I am proud 
to have had him as a friend. Strother was a true patriot in every sense 
of the word. Commissioner Strother's legacy will live on in the lives 
of children he instructed and the members of the Granville community 
whose lives are richer for having known him. His legacy also lives on 
through many people who never knew him, but he made their lives better 
because he cared.




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