[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 49 (Thursday, April 21, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E718]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     RECOGNIZING GINGER LANGEMEIER

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. SAM GRAVES

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 20, 2005

  Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Ginger 
Langemeier, a longtime member of my staff who will be leaving my office 
to work for my distinguished colleague from Nebraska, the Honorable 
Jeff Fortenberry who represents Ginger's home district. I must confess 
that my distinguished colleague Mr. Fortenberry was not the first 
Nebraskan that I had to compete with over Ginger, as she's always been 
a big fan of the distinguished gentleman from Nebraska's Third 
District, the Honorable Tom Osborne.
  Ginger began her political career as an intern on my 1998 Missouri 
State Senate campaign, and leaves my office after rising through the 
ranks to become my Deputy Chief of Staff. In between she has served in 
a variety of different positions, and as always, I am grateful for her 
commitment and service.
  My 1998 state Senate campaign was quite an introduction to politics 
for Ginger. I did not have a large staff, but I did have a large Senate 
district, and Ginger was instrumental in helping me reach out to all of 
the voters across a vast geographic area. She also served as my Finance 
Director, and ever since she has been charged with maintaining our 
office finances.
  I also must thank her for her service to my brother Todd. In 2000, 
Todd ran for state treasurer, and Ginger volunteered for him in her 
spare time. During the rest of her time, she was busy working at my 
office in the Missouri State Senate.
  Later on in 2000, Ginger became the very first employee of Graves for 
Congress after I filed for election to this seat. In addition to her 
recurring role as Finance Director, she handled all of my scheduling, 
and brought to this race the same goal oriented attitude that led me to 
hire her in the first place.

  Thanks to her hard work, I was elected to this House in November of 
2000, and in January of 2001 when I became a Member of the 107th 
Congress, Ginger joined my official staff as a legislative assistant. 
Over the years Ginger has handled just about every issue in my office, 
and is known particularly for her expertise on agriculture, 
appropriations, the Missouri River, and crime. At the start of the 
108th Congress, I promoted her to the position of Senior Policy 
Advisor, and in 2004 she returned to Missouri to become my Deputy Chief 
of Staff.
  Mr. Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Ginger 
Langemeier for her dedication to myself and my constituents. While I am 
sorry to see her go, I know she will be a tremendous asset to my 
distinguished colleague Mr. Fortenberry and the citizens of Nebraska's 
First District.

                          ____________________