[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 60 (Monday, May 13, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4274-S4275]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         TEACHER MAURICE LARUE RETIRES FROM STURGIS HIGH SCHOOL

 Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize and 
honor Maurice (Maury) LaRue on the occasion of his retirement as a 
teacher in the Meade County School District in South Dakota.
  By the end of May, Maury LaRue will have completed 33 years in the 
teaching profession, all at Sturgis High School. Upon graduation with a 
bachelor of science degree in education from the University of North 
Dakota, LaRue accepted a position as teacher and debate coach at 
Sturgis in 1969.
  His teaching career has ranged from social studies and literature to 
vocational broadcasting and forensics. There has always been a strong 
emphasis on communication skills for LaRue. For 20 years, he was one of 
South Dakota's most respected and successful debate coaches. His 
debaters won numerous local, state, regional and national forensic 
honors. And while his students performed well in competition, the true 
measure of Maury's ability to build and improve the communication 
skills of his students, came in the number who went on to become 
successful community leaders, business leaders, attorneys, senior 
political staff as well as students who were able to think and 
communicate in their daily lives as adults, thanks to Maury's dedicated 
teaching style.
  In addition to his many years as teacher and debate coach, Maury also 
coached cross-country and track for

[[Page S4275]]

several years and is retiring as the director of the social studies 
department at Brown High School in Sturgis. He has served as a city 
council member for the City of Sturgis and has maintained a strong 
interest in community affairs and city, county and state government. He 
has performed technical direction for the South Dakota State Junior 
Miss program since 1970, and currently serves as the technical advisor 
for the Sturgis Community Center Theater. He is a member of the Sturgis 
Chamber of Commerce, serving on several committees, and is a member of 
the Fort Meade Museum Board, the Sturgis Area Arts Council and is very 
active as an elder, choir member and leader with the Presbyterian 
Church. For the past dozen years, he has also owned and operated a 
successful photographic studio and gallery in Sturgis and most 
recently, he has become a volunteer fireman and earned the credentials 
as information officer. If there were any time left in the day, he 
would find time to fill it and provide counsel to his students or 
provide service to his community.
  I have met Maury several times during my visits to Sturgis High 
School and the community of Sturgis. He is definitely a mover and 
shaker in the community of Sturgis and is very well-respected by both 
current students and alumni for his skills and abilities as an 
instructor and for the way he has shaped the lives and futures of those 
he has tutored over three decades. He is very focused and knowledgeable 
of local, state and federal politics and issues.
  On the occasion of his retirement as a public school educator, I want 
to congratulate Maurice LaRue for his tireless dedication to his 
students, his commitment to finding the best in his students and for 
helping his students to `communicate' with the world. I also want to 
commend him for his valuable service to his community over the years. 
Instead of hiding behind a textbook or staying at the chalkboard, 
Maurice LaRue has provided his many students over the years with his 
own example of being active in school and community. He has motivated 
the lives of many students and many of them would point to Maury as 
playing a pivotal role in their lives. Can there be any better reward 
for 33 years of dedicated teaching and community service!
  I wish Maurice LaRue the best on his retirement.

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