[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 9 (Friday, January 30, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E81-E82]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     REMEMBERING SEBASTIAN GARAFALO

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ROB SIMMONS

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, January 30, 2004

  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, when I first ran for Congress many people 
from across eastern Connecticut came forward to introduce me to their 
communities. One of those who was

[[Page E82]]

instrumental in offering his wealth of experience, good humor and 
knowledge--before, during and after the campaign--was Sebastian 
Garafalo, of Middletown, Connecticut. Seb was a good friend and a 
devoted public servant. Sadly, Seb Garafalo died on Wednesday, January 
21. He was 71.
  To appreciate Seb's political wisdom and his warm personality you 
need to know that Middletown is a city in which Democrats outnumber 
Republicans by a margin of 3 to 1. Seb was a Republican, yet he was a 
former town councilman and a four-term mayor. Seb won his first mayoral 
race in 1983. He won two more consecutive terms, lost in 1989, and was 
elected mayor again in 1991. How did he do it? Well, Seb once said, 
``It's easy, sometimes I vote their way.''
  Those of us who work in politics know it's much more than that. Seb 
was first of all a ``people person.'' He liked people and he liked 
helping them. Second, while Seb was proud to be a Republican he always 
wanted to do the right thing for his community. Seb put his 
constituents first and his politics second.
  He also served as co-chair of Middletown's 350th anniversary 
celebration and until July, when his cancer finally slowed him down, he 
was on the high school building committee.
  Seb had a sincere smile, a warm handshake and his goal was always to 
bring folks together in common purpose. That's as good a definition of 
public service as I have ever heard. You see, Seb believed in the old 
adage: From what we get, we make a living; from what we give, we make a 
life.
  The Hartford Courant wrote, in Seb's obituary, ``Mr. Garafalo's three 
decades serving Middletown were marked by his listening to others and 
leading with his heart.''
  That tells you a lot about Seb Garafalo; about why he was important 
to his community and why he will be deeply missed.

                          ____________________