[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 147 (Tuesday, October 26, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H10840]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                        TRIBUTE TO PAYNE STEWART

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. McCollum) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, yesterday our Nation and world lost a 
great golfer in Payne Stewart. He died in a very tragic accident that 
most of the Nation followed in a plane crash that occurred many miles 
away from his home in Florida.
  He was a great golfer for many reasons, obviously 20 years in the 
professionals, 3 majors wins, 8 PGA tours, and 7 victories worldwide. 
Who could forget that famous 15-foot birdie putt in the U.S. Open this 
year and give him the great victory that he had just a few months ago 
at Pinehurst, a victory that came as the longest putt in the tournament 
in the history of the country in the U.S. Open.
  But Payne Stewart was much more than a great golfer. He was a very, 
very deeply religious man. He held great convictions. He was a 
humanitarian. He was a father and a husband, a dedicated father and 
husband.
  Orlando became his home in 1983 in my congressional district. I can 
tell my colleagues that the people of central Florida benefited greatly 
from Payne Stewart's generosity and his warmth and compassion for other 
people.
  Perhaps his most well-known charitable contribution came back in 1987 
when he donated $108,000, his winnings from the Bay Hill Classic 
tournament to Florida Hospital. Those funds went to the Florida 
Hospital Circle of Care home in Altamonte Springs for the out-of-town 
parents of cancer patients.
  But he sponsored many other charitable events and, as recently as 
this year, just a few days ago, gave a $500,000 bequest to the First 
Baptist Church in Orlando, to their foundation.
  I know that many Floridians will miss him deeply. Many in central 
Florida will miss him, not alone because of his golf career and because 
of his wit, but because of these charitable contributions. But a lot 
will miss him personally.
  I know that Jack Nicklaus was quoted in the paper this morning, in my 
hometown paper of the Orlando Sentinel, saying, ``Payne always had a 
sharp wit, a tongue-in-cheek that came with a little bit of a needle, 
which is something everyone always enjoyed.''
  But I think the people who are obviously going to miss him most will 
be his wife Tracy and his two wonderful children. Our heart tonight 
goes out to them, to Payne's family. He is a great man, a great golfer. 
His life ended in tragedy, but he gave so much to so many. He will be 
long remembered and long cherished.

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