[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 13 (Wednesday, January 31, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S913-S914]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO DEBBIE JANS

 Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, when I first came back to 
Washington, DC as a Senator-elect in December of 1996 for freshman 
orientation, one of the first people I met was a young lady who I was 
told I had to get to know if I was to be able to successfully get 
around the august halls of the Senate. She was then the Director of the 
Congressional Special Services Office that provided assistance to 
Capitol visitors and staff with disabilities. What I did not know at 
the time, but soon learned, was that she had been working for years to 
help move both Houses of Congress toward compliance with the landmark 
Americans with Disabilities Act. What I also didn't know at first, but 
learned almost immediately was that this young lady, Deborah Kerrigan 
Jans--known to all as Debbie--once worked for that great Senator Hubert 
Humphrey and that in addition to Minnesota ties she shared with Senator 
Humphrey a great fondness for the spoken word! In spite of that, or 
perhaps because of it, I soon found that Debbie had made herself 
indispensable to the conduct of my activities as a United States 
Senator and I quickly signed her on to my staff to coordinate my 
scheduling and advance work in the Senate. Part of her role was 
described very well in an August 1999 article in Esquire magazine:

       He (Cleland) has one staffer, Deborah Jans, who advances 
     his schedule to make sure he can get there. She is a dervish, 
     racing in and out of men's rooms to make sure the doors on 
     the stalls open out and not in, looking everywhere for ramps 
     and elevators, measuring doorways for the chair. . . . So she 
     goes, and she measures, and she checks--a whirlwind advancing 
     a kind of rolling thunder.

  Today, Debbie is retiring after 25 years of service to the Senate and 
to Congress. Prior to her excellent work for me, Debbie served as 
Director of the Congressional Special Services Office, Manager of the 
Senate Special Services Office, and Tour Guide with the U.S. Capitol 
Guide Service. These positions allowed her to share her love of the 
Capitol with visitors, providing a political, historical and 
architectural orientation to our magnificent institution. As I 
previously mentioned, in the latter part of this service, her role was 
extended to providing support and services to Capitol visitors and 
staff with disabilities. The innovative programs that she managed 
included special tours for individuals with disabilities, sign language 
interpreting, wheelchair loans, development of Braille materials, as 
well as classes and seminars for Congressional staff on disability 
issues.
  Debbie and her husband Ron, who is a wonderful fellow himself and has 
had the opportunity to develop tremendous listening skills during his 
years with

[[Page S914]]

Debbie, are preparing to return to the Land of 10,000 Lakes. 
Washington's loss is Minnesota's gain. We shall miss Debbie here on 
Capitol Hill. The place will never be the same.

                          ____________________