[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 51 (Tuesday, April 20, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E560-E561]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          HONORING THE MEMORY OF THE HON. MARY FRANCES STEWART

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JO BONNER

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 20, 2004

  Mr. BONNER. Mr. Speaker, Baldwin County and indeed the entire First 
Congressional District of Alabama will say goodbye tomorrow to a dear 
friend, a wonderful lady and a truly outstanding public servant. Today, 
however, I rise with a heavy heart to honor the life--and mourn the 
death--of that special friend, Baldwin County Commissioner Mary Frances 
Stewart, who was killed in a tragic car wreck early Saturday morning.
  Without a doubt, Commissioner Stewart was the epitome of a true 
Southern lady. Both gentle and genteel, Mary Frances somehow found a 
way in almost everything she did to make people feel good about 
themselves and good about their government.
  Moreover, she had that rare knack for being equally devoted to her 
family and her constituency in Baldwin County. It goes without saying 
but her death leaves a void both in the life of the county she so 
dearly loved and in the wide circle of her family and many friends--a 
void that quite frankly will be nearly impossible to fill.
  A native of rural Georgiana, in Butler County, Mary Frances was a 
graduate of Georgiana High School and received both her Bachelor's and 
Master's Degrees in Education from the University of South Alabama.
  She began what would become a distinguished 23-year career in 
teaching in the Alabama public school system, spending 13 years with 
the Mobile County school system. Commissioner Stewart spent the last 
ten years of her teaching career at Foley High School in

[[Page E561]]

Baldwin County where she specialized in American and Alabama history.
  During her years in the classroom, Mary Frances spent untold hours in 
an effort to stir her students with a passion for and ownership of 
their government. Whether taking her students on field trips to 
Montgomery or Washington, D.C., she always challenged her students to 
learn about the past as they prepared for their future. To say her 
career in education was a success would be a major understatement; few 
people can lay claim to being awarded both ``Mobile County Teacher of 
the Year'' and ``Baldwin County Teacher of the Year'' honors, awards 
that bespeak the tremendous recognition and respect she enjoyed from 
her peers.
  Following her retirement from teaching, Mary Frances became active in 
local politics and eventually ran for a seat on the Baldwin County 
Commission. She was elected to a four-year term representing the 
residents of Commission District Four in the south-central part of the 
county and had served with admiration and distinction since that time. 
As a member of the commission, she served as Chairperson of the Road 
and Bridge Committee and as Vice Chairperson of the Environmental 
Resources Committee.
  In addition to the many demands of her elective office, Commissioner 
Stewart also served on numerous boards and foundations whose goals are 
to advocate the special interests and needs of the residents of Baldwin 
County. During the past several years, she served as a member of the 
South Baldwin Chamber of Commerce, the South Baldwin Regional Medical 
Center Foundation Board, the Jennifer Claire Moore Foundation Board, 
the Junior Achievement of Mobile/Baldwin Board, the Community Health 
Hospital Board, and the Department of Human Resources Quality Assurance 
Committee.
  Commissioner Stewart was selected by former Alabama Governor Fob 
James to serve on the State of Alabama Aeronautics Board. She also 
served on the Board of Trustees of Morgan's Chapel United Methodist 
Church in Bon Secour, Alabama, where she was an active member.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in remembering a 
dedicated public servant, a long-time advocate for Baldwin County and a 
true friend to one and all. Commissioner Mary Frances Stewart will be 
deeply missed by her family--her son, Ed Stanford, her daughters, Tammy 
Stanford-Henley, Jo Stanford, and Fran Kollins, and her five 
grandchildren--as well as the countless friends she leaves behind.
  Our thoughts and prayers are with them all during this difficult 
time.

                          ____________________