[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 89 (Tuesday, June 22, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1348]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  ON THE OCCASION OF THE FAREWELL RECEPTION HONORING CHARLES N. DUNCAN

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. EVA M. CLAYTON

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 22, 1999

  Mrs. CLAYTON. Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday, friends, family and co-
workers will gather in the Indian Treaty Room at the White House to 
honor a Son of the South, a Native North Carolinian, Mr. Charles N. 
Duncan.
  Charles is leaving his position as Special Assistant to the President 
and Associate Director of Presidential Personnel. He will be greatly 
missed.
  Since graduating from Howard University some two and a half decades 
ago, he has devoted his life to a career in public service and 
politics. Yet, Charles is more than a public servant. He is more than a 
political consultant as his resume presents him. He is an ordinary 
person who is special, and a special person who is ordinary. He has 
worked with those on the lowest rungs of the ladder. He has sat with 
Presidents and served the homeless. More than anything else, Charles 
cares.
  Mr. Speaker, Public service and politics requires the best and 
brightest, the most dedicated and committed, the cream of the crop, the 
pick of the pack, the faithful, the loyal, the steadfast. Charles 
Duncan has reflected those qualities in all that he has done, over the 
years. It is hard to imagine a Democratic Administration or a 
Democratic political campaign, without Charles in the picture.
  He represents what is good about North Carolina and our Nation. He 
understands that little happens when one stands alone. He works to 
ensure that the families and children of America have a future that is 
worthy of our past. In his deeds, Charles has always made the right 
choice. The right choice between communities that are average and those 
that are exceptional. The right choice between individual comfort and 
functioning families.
  Charles has taken his tasks and won them well, no matter how large or 
small. And while unselfishly giving of his time and energy, he has 
never neglected those things most important--family and church. It is 
rare these days, indeed, when we find a person of talent and humility, 
one who is capable and modest, common yet exceptional. The White House 
is losing a person with a ready smile, a friendly disposition, a 
concern for all. I do not know what Charles Duncan will do next, but if 
he returns home, the Nation's loss will be North Carolina's gain.

                          ____________________