[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 45 (Friday, April 15, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E659]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 IN HONOR OF GOVERNOR ELBERT N. CARVEL

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL N. CASTLE

                              of delaware

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 14, 2005

  Mr. CASTLE. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise today 
to pay tribute to former Delaware Governor Elbert N. Carvel, lovingly 
known to most Delawareans as ``Big Bert''. Bert was born in Shelter 
Island, New York on February 9th, 1910 to loving parents Arnold W. 
Carvel and Elizabeth Nostrand Carvel.
  Bert Carvel graduated from Baltimore Polytechnic Institute in 1928 
and the University of Baltimore law school in 1931. After moving to 
Delaware in 1936, Mr. Carvel began working for the Valliant Fertilizer 
Company in Laurel. After years of hard work at Valliant Fertilizer, he 
rose to the position of President and Chairman of the Board.
  Soon after rising to prominence in the business community, the 6 
foot, 6 inch, gentle giant decided to throw his hat into the political 
arena. He was elected Lieutenant Governor of Delaware in 1944 and 
became the 65th Governor of the First State in 1949. He returned to the 
governorship in 1961 and served out his second term, eventually leaving 
elected office for good in 1965. As a former Governor myself, I honor 
and thank Governor Carvel for his major accomplishments while in 
office.
  After leaving office, Governor Carvel remained a fixture around 
Delaware. His good-natured speeches and humor made him a lively and 
well-known personality throughout all three counties. He will be 
remembered for his work with community foundations such as: The March 
of Dimes, The American Cancer Society, Delaware Wild Lands, the Boy 
Scouts, Ducks Unlimited, many historical societies throughout Delaware 
and through his church, St. Philip's Episcopal in Laurel.
  Bert Carvel's legacy is one of equal human rights and opportunity; he 
opposed the death penalty and favored a public accommodations law, 
civil rights era reform that opened public places to all people, 
including African-Americans. Bert Carvel was so strong in his 
convictions that he did not worry about the political and personal 
price of legislation. He knew what was right and he made it his job to 
make sure Delaware always did the just thing. He was truly a larger 
than life statesman who will leave a larger than life legacy for all of 
us to remember.

                          ____________________