[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 125 (Thursday, September 23, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S11373]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO MR. FRANCIS WILSON

 Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to Mr. 
Francis M. Wilson and his wonderful and admirable life.
  Mr. Wilson served as a tech-sergeant during World War II in Germany 
when he was only 18 years old. He was an engineer in the Detroit Public 
School District, a devoted family man, and an active citizen. The 
challenges he successfully faced in these capacities have distinguished 
him within his family, his town, his state, and his country.
  As a very young boy, he sold ``Liberty'' magazines to supplement his 
family's income during the Great Depression. Growing up during a time 
of financial strife led him to find solace in nature. Mr. Wilson was 
exposed to nature during his experience in the military and developed a 
love and knowledge of it. As a young adult he was able to identify a 
variety of birds, insects, trees, and flowers. He then went on to form 
and preside over a group of citizens that forced new construction to 
adhere to guidelines designed to protect nearby lakes.
  Once he reached adulthood, Mr. Wilson found his real love, Dolores. 
Together they found great joy in their children and grandchildren. Mr. 
Wilson wanted to ensure that they received all the advantages that he 
did not have. He inspired his children to put themselves through 
college. He provided them with the opportunity to grow up in a safe 
environment, allowing them to mature at a more deliberate pace than the 
one that was forced upon him. His wife, Dolores, expresses the best 
tribute to Mr. Wilson when she writes ``this brave, honest, dedicated, 
ordinary man was to his family and America `the staff of life' that 
fuels generations to come.''
  Mr. Wilson expressed his passion for education through his 
involvement with children as an engineer of thirty years in the Detroit 
Public Schools. He gave and received respect from all he knew. He not 
only led by lecture but, more importantly and effectively, by example. 
He never left any doubt as to where he stood in a debate and firmly 
believed in right and wrong. Mr. Wilson offered little patience for 
individuals passing on responsibility as an excuse for negligent or bad 
behavior. Personifying Winston Churchill's statement, ``We make a 
living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give,'' Mr. 
Francis M. Wilson left this world an honorable, loyal, selfless servant 
to his country and a loved and missed father, grandfather and 
husband.

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