[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 121 (Monday, September 14, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10326-S10327]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                  TRIBUTE TO ``LIB'' SMITH: 1911-1998

 Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, there was this lady of nobility, 
whom everybody called ``Lib,'' who was loved by everyone who knew her. 
She slipped away into eternity on August 15 prompting

[[Page S10327]]

sadness among the multitudes whom she had helped and befriended during 
her busy lifetime.
  I met Mrs. Elisabeth Smith in 1972, the year I first became a 
candidate for the U.S. Senate. She came to our campaign headquarters in 
Raleigh's Sir Walter Hotel, announcing that she had come to support 
me--perhaps the most improbable Senate candidate in the history of the 
republic.
  And support me she did, vigorously, from the first campaign in 1972 
down through the years until 1996, the year of my fourth reelection.
  That day in 1972, she had just retired after long service as a 
registered nurse in the office of a prominent Raleigh physician.
  There was never any question about her fervent love for her country, 
nor her devotion to the moral and spiritual principles laid down by the 
Founding Fathers.
  She agreed to take on the responsibilities of treasurer of four of 
the five campaigns conducted by the Helms for Senate campaign 
organizations.
  Year after year, Lib Smith was a sort of beloved ``mother hen'' to 
the throngs of volunteer campaign workers as well as those who bore 
primary responsibilities conducting the campaigns. She was a soothing 
influence when tempers festered. She was a reliable friend to all who 
needed her. And she performed perfectly and responsibly as the official 
Treasurer of every Helms for Senate campaign from 1978 through 1990.
  She was a faithful member of St. Timothy's Episcopal Church, the 
Diocese of North Carolina, and the Altar Guild. In her ``spare time'' 
she did the needlework for St. Timothy's Altar Vestments--as well as 
anything else that needed doing at her church.
  I learned only recently that she was renowned as a ballroom dancer--
and as an artist who painted many portraits of loved ones and friends. 
Her two children--son Phillip W. Smith and daughter Mrs. Gayle 
Bullock--provided her with four grandchildren and six great-
grandchildren.
  Mr. President, I know of no one who enjoyed life more than Lib Smith. 
She brought joy and comfort to countless others. She was a wonderfully 
remarkable lady whom I will never forget and to whom I shall always be 
grateful.

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