[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 49 (Thursday, April 8, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Page S4018]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     IN MEMORIAM OF NORMAN A. LeBEL

 Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I would like to take a moment to 
reflect on the life of Professor Norman A. LeBel, who passed away on 
December 21, 2003. Professor LeBel's life was dedicated to organic 
chemistry research where he was an outstanding example to his 
colleagues and an inspiration to his students.
  Professor LeBel was born in Augusta, Maine on March 22, 1931, and 
received an A.B. degree in chemistry from Bowdoin College in 1952. 
Professor LeBel and his wife Connie, also from Maine, returned often to 
the States.
  Professor LeBel obtained a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1957. He then moved to 
Detroit, MI, where he began a 40-year career at Wayne State University 
in the Department of Chemistry, during which time he directed the 
research of 32 Ph.D. students. Professor LeBel made numerous 
contributions to organic chemistry during his long career, the most 
notable being the development of the chemical transformation commonly 
called the LeBel Reaction. He retired in 1996, after serving Wayne 
State University as chairman of the chemistry department; as chief of 
staff for the office of the provost; and as interim dean of the College 
of Liberal Arts.
  Professor LeBel served the American Chemical Society (ACS) in a 
number of roles, starting as chairman of the Awards Committee of the 
Detroit Section (1961-1962), then secretary-treasurer of the Division 
of Organic Chemistry (1965-1969). He was a division councilor for 20 
years, starting in 1970, and served on the Committees on Publications, 
Nominations & Elections, and Divisional Activities. Professor LeBel was 
also general chairman of the international chemistry meeting known as 
Pacifichem 2000.
  Among his many awards, Professor LeBel received the Wayne State 
University President's Award for Excellence in Teaching in 1981, the 
ACS Organic Chemistry Division's Paul G. Gassman Distinguished Service 
Award in 1996, and the ACS Santa Clara Valley Section's Shirley B. 
Radding Award in 2001.
  In conclusion, I want to express my condolences to Professor LeBel's 
family and former students. His contributions to the field of organic 
chemistry are only equaled by his devotion to higher education.

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