[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 148 (Friday, October 16, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2230-E2231]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO LAURA ROBINSON KUZNIAR

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SANDER M. LEVIN

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 16, 1998

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in the deepest sadness to memorialize 
the untimely passing of a member of my staff, Laura Robinson Kuzniar, 
whose life was cut short at the young age of thirty years.
  My first contact with Laura was when she was a small girl and we had 
occasion to visit her home in Royal Oak. Our families had similar 
interest--my wife, Vicki, and Laura's mother, Rosemary, participated in 
the AAUW, and her father, Hal, was active in political life.

[[Page E2231]]

  In December 1995, as a young woman and graduate of Oakland 
University, Laura was hired as a caseworker and office manager in my 
Sterling Heights district office. Here she was a quick learner, a team 
player and an inspiration to the entire staff. She was wise beyond her 
years; she was concerned and caring for those constituents she served; 
and she was fastidious and devoted to her work.
  In the prime of her life, in a wonderfully happy marriage to Larry, 
misfortune struck in September 1996. Laura was diagnosed with leukemia.
  With an exceptional fighting spirit, she endured an uphill battle for 
a little more than two years. Despite stays in the hospital, and its 
accompanying pain and suffering, Laura kept battling against all odds. 
Gaining back some strength, and with spirits high, she would come back 
to work, always hoping for a positive prognosis. But the leukemia 
returned, and on October 13, it ended her life.
  How unfortunate it is that this remarkable woman who had so much to 
give not only to her family and friends and colleagues, but to society 
as well, was taken from us--taken away before she had the opportunity 
to fully realize her bountiful gifts.
  I, and her colleagues in both my district and Washington offices, 
have indeed lost a marvelous friend. I know we will miss her humor, her 
charm, her insight, her feistiness and her goodness.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in sending our 
condolences to Laura's devoted husband, Larry, to her caring parents, 
Rosemary and Harold Robinson, and to her loving sister, Elisabeth, and 
brother, Thomas.

                          ____________________