[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 46 (Thursday, April 23, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3530-S3531]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                IN HONOR OF FORMER SENATOR TERRY SANFORD

  Mr. HOLLINGS. Mr. President, today, as it has for the past three 
days, the South mourns the passing of one of its greatest leaders. 
Terry Sanford, former Governor of and United States Senator from North 
Carolina, passed away on Saturday, April 18, 1998.
  From 1961 to 1965, Governor Sanford forged a remarkable record as one 
of America's most progressive governors. His great passions were 
education, civil rights, and social justice. Perhaps his bravest act as 
Governor, and the one that posed the greatest political risk, was to 
encourage the people of North Carolina to accept the winds of change 
that swept the South during the 1960s.
  In a 1963 speech, for example, he implored the people of North 
Carolina to end job discrimination against blacks and announced the 
creation of a biracial panel, the North Carolina Good Neighbor Council, 
to work toward that end. He also appointed many black North Carolinians 
to important positions in his administration and publicly supported 
school integration.
  The other hallmark of Governor Sanford's administration was his 
commitment to education. He pushed state lawmakers to provide more 
money to schools and laid the foundation that has helped make the North 
Carolina higher education system one of the best in the world. As a 
true intellectual and lover of the humanities, Terry Sanford understood 
the importance of ideas for their own sake. But he also was a practical 
man, and he realized that a well-educated populace is crucial to 
attracting new corporations and creating good jobs. Thanks to his 
vision, North Carolina now is home to one of the best-educated 
populations in the nation, and it is a leader in creating high-paying, 
high-tech jobs.
  From 1969 to 1985, Senator Sanford was President of Duke University. 
He was one of that institution's most vigorous and successful 
presidents, inspiring loyalty and love among faculty and students and 
helping the University increase its endowment and improve its 
resources. As President of Duke, Terry Sanford did great things for not 
just the students, but all the people of North Carolina. Under his 
hand, Duke joined North Carolina State and the University of North 
Carolina as part of the vaunted Research Triangle, which has generated 
high-tech jobs for North Carolina and helped the state secure a 
reputation as one of the best locations in the country for companies 
and their workers. President Sanford dedicated himself completely to 
Duke; he was driven to serve the school by the same passion for 
education and material and intellectual progress which had guided his 
governorship.
  Discontent with the direction in which our nation was headed and the 
seemingly intractable problems that had beset the political process 
drove Senator Sanford to offer himself for the Democratic nomination 
for President in 1972 and 1976. Although both his candidacies were 
unsuccessful, Terry ran with conviction and courage. Above all, he ran 
to oppose those who offered no alternative to confusion other than 
darkness, who would have replaced idealism with cynicism, and who 
practiced the politics of division rather than unity.
  Terry Sanford achieved national office in 1986, when the people of 
North Carolina elected him to the United States Senate. During his 
term, Senator Sanford was one of the ablest and most conscientious 
legislators this body has ever seen. He maintained his well-deserved 
reputation for decency, integrity, and intelligence; continued to show 
great interest in education and social policies; and never flagged in 
his commitment to the public good.
  After being narrowly defeated for reelection in 1992, Senator Sanford 
returned to Duke University, where he taught courses on public policy 
and government. As an outstanding educator, he continued to enrich his 
students' lives and devote himself to the dissemination of knowledge.
  Mr. President, Terry Sanford's death is a loss for North Carolina, 
this nation, and this Senate. He embodied the

[[Page S3531]]

best of public service and education. His tremendous accomplishments 
were recognized and appreciated for over 30 years by the people of 
North Carolina. Increasingly, they have been recognized throughout the 
nation as well. In 1981, for example, a Harvard University study named 
Terry Sanford one of the ten best governors in the nation in this 
century. This was high praise, but Terry surely deserved it.
  With his passing, our nation has lost one of its most tireless public 
servants. We in the Senate have lost a cherished colleague and loyal 
friend. Fortunately for us all, Terry Sanford's legacy will live on in 
the educational institutions of North Carolina to which he gave so much 
and in the example he set for those of us who aspire to public service.
  Mr. President, of everything that has been said and written about our 
dear friend Terry Sanford, no one has said it better than Governor Jim 
Hunt of North Carolina, in the eulogy he delivered at Senator Sanford's 
funeral. At this time, Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that 
Governor Hunt's eulogy be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the eulogy was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

  Eulogy by Gov. Jim Hunt at the Memorial Services for Terry Sanford, 
                             April 22, 1998

       In the words of a great Methodist hymn: ``Oh, for a 
     thousand tongues to sing our Great Redeemer's praise.''
       Indeed, our thousand tongues are here today to praise our 
     Redeemer and one of His most magnificent gifts to the people 
     of our state and our nation.
       I know that I speak for many of you when I say very simply: 
     Terry Sanford was my hero.
       I'm sure that Terry Sanford has already has his orientation 
     with the Lord. And it is not a one way conversation. And I 
     suspect that by now he has almost certainly given the Lord a 
     few good ideas for improving Heaven.
       At a time when we struggle about whether government should 
     act, let us remember the words of an uncommon man who could 
     think great thoughts and make them a reality. In one of his 
     books, Terry wrote:
       ``Indeed, if government is not for the express purpose of 
     lifting the level of civilization by broadening the 
     opportunities in life for its people, what is its purpose?''
       And he added:
       ``Government is not something passive, not our kind of 
     government. It has built into it the spirit of outreach, the 
     concern for every individual. Look at the verbs in the 
     Constitution's Preamble--establish, insure, provide, promote, 
     secure. All these connote action, and all suggest that we 
     must constantly be striving to improve the opportunities of 
     our people.''
       And act he did. Strive to improve opportunities for our 
     people he did.
       Imagine what North Carolina would be like if we had not had 
     Terry Sanford striving for us these many years.
       Imagine what North Carolina would have been like in the 
     1960s if we had not had a Governor who believed in bringing 
     people of all races together. If we'd had a Governor like 
     other states' who appealed to the worst rather than the best 
     in us. Imagine no Terry Sanford.
       Imagine what North Carolina would be like without the 
     Research Triangle Park. Imagine no Terry Sanford.
       Imagine what North Carolina would be like without the 
     community college system or the School of the Arts. Imagine 
     no Terry Sanford.
       Imagine what North Carolina would be like had he not set 
     national excellence as the goal for this great university--
     and for that other one just up the road. Imagine no Terry 
     Sanford.
       Imagine what North Carolina's schools would be like if a 
     great Governor hadn't had the courage to pass a tax for 
     school improvements--an act of courage that cost his own 
     political ambitions dearly. Imagine no Terry Sanford.
       It is truly unimaginable. You cannot imagine North Carolina 
     without Terry Sanford.
       Forty years ago, no one could have imagined what North 
     Carolina would become.
       No one, that is, but Terry Sanford.
       He once wrote:
       ``The governor, by his very office, embodies his state. He 
     stands alone at his inauguration as the spokesman for all the 
     people. His presence at the peak of the system is unique, for 
     he must represent the slum and the suburb, his concerns must 
     span rural poverty and urban blight. The responsibility for 
     initiative in statewide programs falls upon the governor. He 
     must energize his administration, search out the experts, 
     formulate the programs, mobilize and support and carry new 
     ideas into action.''
       Terry, you set the goals and our sights very high. So high 
     that we often wonder if we can meet your standard. But your 
     good works, your words and your spirit tell us every day, in 
     every way, that the goal can be ours. That the struggle is 
     worth it.
       When we leave today, we will leave the body of our hero in 
     this chapel. We leave it here because no other structure is 
     sufficiently magnificent to serve as the final resting place 
     for a life as magnificent as his.
       But while we leave his body here to rest, the evidence of 
     his good works is and will be everywhere around us--in the 
     institutions he led, in the innovations he championed, in the 
     individuals he touched and, most of all, in the spirit of 
     everyone here today and everyone in this state. And so it 
     will be for every generation yet to come.
       For all that North Carolina has become and will be, Terry, 
     we thank you.
       God bless this place. God bless this family. And thank God 
     for the magnificent blessing of giving North Carolina Terry 
     Sandord.

                          ____________________