[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 169 (Friday, December 7, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2230]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     MEMORIAL TO JACQUES LESSTRANG

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JERRY LEWIS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, December 6, 2001

  Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I would like today to honor the 
memory of Jacques LesStrang, whose lifetime of accomplishments included 
worldwide recognition as an author and expert on the Great Lakes and 
the founder of Harbor House Publishers. Mr. LesStrang passed away on 
December 5, at the age of 75.
  Jacques LesStrang was one of the nation's outstanding and most widely 
quoted authors on the Great Lakes. He wrote six books on subjects 
ranging from international trade to maritime and political history, to 
U.S.-Canadian relations. His book ``Seaway,'' which chronicled the 
history of the St. Lawrence Seaway, was a Book-of-the-Month Club 
selection. He began publishing the widely respected and internationally 
distributed maritime journal, Seaway Review, in 1969 and served as 
Editor-in-Chief for 24 years. He founded the successful regional firm 
Harbor House Publishers, and served as CEO until 1990. In addition, Mr. 
LesStrang published economic reports for the U.S. Congress and the 
Canadian Parliament and wrote the script for the 1993 PBS documentary, 
``Inward Passage.'' He was named ``Maritime Writer of the Year'' by the 
U.S. Propeller Club and ``Great Lakes Man of the Year'' by the 
governors of the eight Great Lakes states and premiers of the Canadian 
provinces of Ontario and Quebec.
  In recent years, Mr. LesStrang served as the CEO of the LesStrang 
Group, a Christian publishing and marketing firm in Palm Desert, 
California. LesStrang was also the former president and creative 
director of an international advertising and marketing agency with 
offices in Michigan and London, England. He served as an international 
marketing consultant to the State of Michigan, heading trade missions 
to Europe to generate business for the state. In addition, he managed a 
number of successful state and national political campaigns for 
congressional and gubernatorial candidates, including former Michigan 
Governors William Milliken and George Romney. Mr. LesStrang's work on 
international marketing, government, and the maritime industry has been 
published in 16 languages.
  Bom in Pittsburgh, raised by his mother, Ada, LesStrang developed a 
lifelong love of literature and music, which he shared with his seven 
children and eleven grandchildren. LesStrang served in the Air Force in 
World War II and as a military journalist at Scott Field in St. Louis. 
He received degrees from George Washington University in Washington, 
D.C. and the University of Michigan.
  Perhaps Jacques LesStrang's greatest legacy is the family he raised 
with his wife Barbara. Many of the members of the California 
Congressional Delegation will attest to the hard work and dedication of 
his son, Dave LesStrang, who is my deputy chief of staff and served as 
the staff member to the California Republican Delegation for many 
years. In the last days of his life, Jacques LesStrang was joined by 
Dave and his other children--Michelle Cortright of Boyne City, 
Michigan; Diane Mathias of Palm Desert, California; Steve Marcks of 
Carlsbad, California; Paul LesStrang of Ringle, Wisconsin; Linda Keefer 
of Ridgefield, Connecticut; and Christian LesStrang of San Francisco, 
California--along with his 11 grandchildren and great-grandson.
  Mr. Speaker, please join me in extending condolences to the family of 
Jacques LesStrang and in remembering his many achievements.

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