[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 50 (Friday, April 22, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E734]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  CONGRATULATING MATHILDA SHEPTAK ON 40 YEARS IN THE TOURISM INDUSTRY

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                         HON. PAUL E. KANJORSKI

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 21, 2005

  Mr. KANJORSKI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask you and my esteemed 
colleagues in the House of Representatives to join me in congratulating 
my good friend Mathilda Sheptak as she marks her 40th year in the 
tourism industry in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
  Mathilda was born into the hospitality field. Her family ran a 
boarding house with a restaurant and gas station in Lakewood, New 
Jersey. Mathilda is the daughter of Louis and Catherine Barravecchia. 
Mathilda is married to Steve Sheptak, a retired IBM sales and marketing 
executive.
  When Mathilda was eleven years old, her family bought the Overlook 
Inn in Canadensis. The tourism industry was the dominant business in 
the rural Poconos.
  At this time, Pocono resorts were open from Memorial Day to Columbus 
Day. The family resort had 30 rooms and no liquor license. Guests were 
served three meals a day. Entertainment revolved around card games, 
cookouts, a pool table, and eventually, a swimming pool.
  Mathilda thrived on meeting the guests and developing interpersonal 
relationships with the families who would return year after year. 
Mathilda grew up with the ``resort brats''--the children of all the 
other resort owners. During the off-season, these families worked to 
improve their resorts and planned for the coming season.
  Mathilda attended Pocono Mountain High School and was part of its 
first graduating class. She attended East Stroudsburg University and 
then worked at a corporation that manufactured products for IBM.
  Mathilda joined the Pocono Mountain Vacation Bureau on February 1, 
1965, as a secretary and subsequently moved up to office manager. She 
eventually took over the No. 2 spot at PMVB, and has been deputy 
executive director ever since. In this position, she is responsible for 
the budget, environmental planning, financing and statewide issues.
  Forty years in tourism is a testament to Mathilda's love of the 
Pocono region. I am fortunate to have worked with such a dedicated 
individual in promoting the tourism industry.
  Mr. Speaker, please join me in congratulating Mathilda Sheptak on 
this milestone and wishing her many more successful years. Tourism 
remains the area's largest industry and Mathilda is a big part of that 
legacy.

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