[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 60 (Friday, May 4, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E727]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page E727]]



        TRIBUTE TO LAURIE MATHEWS, COLORADO STATE PARKS DIRECTOR

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. SCOTT McINNIS

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 3, 2001

  Mr. McINNIS. Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to 
thank and say good-bye to a nationally recognized leader in outdoor 
recreation. Laurie Mathews announced her departure from the Colorado 
State Parks system, after a decade long tenure as its director. The 
state of Colorado will miss Laurie's leadership as well as her 
dedication to the park system in Colorado.
  During her ten years with the state parks, Laurie helped bolster 
environmental and interpretation, adding 30 seasonal interpreters, 
while developing programs that reach more than one million visitors per 
year. The State Trails program under Laurie's leadership grew to more 
than $4 million dollars annually. ``The people of Colorado have been 
lucky to have Laurie Mathews at the helm of the State Parks for the 
past decade, a time of transition for the State Parks system into a 
national model,'' said Governor Bill Owens. ``On behalf of the people 
of Colorado, I want to thank Laurie for her significant contributions 
to our beautiful state.''
  Laurie oversaw the addition of 25,000 acres, worth $54 million to the 
State Park system as well as an initiative to improve staffing levels 
and customer service throughout the state. She also created the Crown 
Jewel initiative, which brokered the cost share with the Bureau of 
Reclamation that brought over $40 million in renovation to Colorado 
State Parks, and oversaw the construction of 19 new visitor centers.
  ``The last ten years have been a remarkable experience for me. I am 
very proud of the accomplishments I've been fortunate enough to be part 
of, from the addition of incredible new park lands and buffer lands to 
new visitors centers the people of Colorado will be able to enjoy for 
generations,'' said Laurie. ``What I will miss most are the wonderful 
people who work for Colorado State Parks. I am honored to have been 
part of such a strong and talented team.''
  Mr. Speaker, the people of Colorado will miss Laurie's leadership 
greatly. She has done so much for the beauty of Colorado and for its 
citizens. For that I would like to say thanks and wish her good luck in 
her new career with the Himalayan Dental Relief Project in Nepal. I 
know she will excel just as she did with the Colorado State Parks 
system.

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