[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 35 (Monday, March 27, 2006)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2410-S2411]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO ERMA ORA BYRD

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I want the record to reflect that my dear 
friend, Senator Jay Rockefeller, is unable to be on the floor tonight 
because of a medical condition. It is nothing that won't be resolved 
quickly, but he is unable to be here today. He asked me to read, 
verbatim, a statement he would give if he were here tonight.
  Mr. President, this is a floor statement on the passing of Erma Ora 
Byrd, read by Harry Reid, as written by Jay Rockefeller:

       My dear friend and revered colleague of more than two 
     decades has suffered a grievous loss, and I ask my colleagues 
     to join Sharon and me in mourning the passage of Erma Ora 
     Byrd, the wife and soul mate of West Virginia Senator, Robert 
     C. Byrd.
       Before Robert Byrd was a Senator, before he was an 
     attorney, before the West Virginia Legislature named him the 
     West Virginian of the 20th Century, Erma recognized something 
     extraordinary in this son of the Winding Gulf coalfields. 
     What we see today, she saw then in the gas station attendant 
     and welder and butcher's apprentice who became her husband. 
     Those of us who had the privilege of knowing Erma, also know 
     that this was hardly the last time her vision proved 
     extraordinary. Throughout her life, her intelligence and 
     common sense made her a close partner to one of America's 
     most influential men. As Senator Byrd once said: ``She is not 
     only my wife, but also my best counselor.''
       Yet, as sharp as Erma was in finding her husband, Senator 
     Byrd was equally astute. Not only was Erma a wise counselor, 
     but she was also a constant source of support. A proud coal 
     miner's daughter from Stotesbury, WV, she gave unhesitatingly 
     and without reserve. She was the support system that got him 
     from Capitol Hill to law school at the end of a hard day, and 
     to the many meetings and appearances his job required. Always 
     the model of grace and dignity, she was an extraordinary 
     mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. She made Robert C. 
     Byrd a better father, a better Senator, and a better man. In 
     many ways, Erma Byrd was the quintessential West Virginia 
     woman, teaching her family to work hard and care deeply, all 
     the while giving unceasingly to those around her.
       Their marriage was not some practical partnership--it was a 
     love-match. After nearly 69 years of marriage, Senator Byrd 
     still radiated, in the words of John Cheever, the deep and 
     indisguisable joy of someone who has just fallen in love. 
     Together, they shared the triumphs and setbacks of political 
     life, always celebrating not elective office but the 
     opportunity to help people in their home State, for which 
     they cared so deeply.
       Together, they knew tragedy as well, with the devastating 
     and untimely death of a beloved grandson. For a time, Senator 
     Byrd even gave up playing his fiddle as the music became too 
     much to bear. But they found solace in each other, in family, 
     and in their truly extraordinary faith in God.
       During one of my last visits with Erma, I was sitting on my 
     couch being charmed, as everyone always was, by her warmth 
     and wit as we talked about everything in the world except the 
     United States Senate. She was a welcome reminder that life 
     existed outside our work and that delight was best discovered 
     in mountain flowers and close family and old friends.
       Just a few weeks ago at my home, Senator Byrd spoke 
     lovingly and movingly about what we now know to be Erma's 
     final days. Even as Erma's mind and body failed her, he felt 
     profoundly that their hearts are forever linked and their 
     souls will recognize each other always. You could see that as 
     she suffered, he suffered, as she endured, he endured.
       All the while Senator Byrd maintained a daunting Senate 
     schedule, as she had wanted him to do, and every evening he 
     returned home to his one true love.
       As Erma's hardship is over now and she is in the loving 
     arms of the Lord, Senator Byrd will have the complete support 
     of West Virginia and his Senate family as he bears the new 
     hardship of this loss, but with the added grace of Mrs. Byrd 
     watching over him.
       The circle has been broken. But we take strength from the 
     sure knowledge that, in years to come, a better home awaits 
     all of us, and for Senator Byrd his life will be complete 
     again.

  Mr. President, that ends the statement of Jay Rockefeller.
  Speaking for myself as the Democratic leader and as someone who has 
learned so much about the Senate from Robert C. Byrd, I recognize that 
at 7:20 p.m. on this past Saturday night, Erma Byrd, the wife of our 
own Senator Robert Byrd, passed away. Mrs. Byrd had been struggling 
with illness for quite some time. But after years of pain and 
discomfort, she has found peace.
  On behalf of the Senate, I offer our condolences to this good man, 
Senator Byrd, his daughters Mona and Marjorie, and to his dozens of 
grandchildren and great-grandchildren. It is our prayer that they, too, 
find peace and comfort during these difficult days.
  This is a sad time for the Senate family. Erma's passing is a loss 
for all of us. She was a special person and will be missed. She touched 
the lives of everyone she met. She touched my life. My colleague from 
West Virginia, Senator Rockefeller, had the privilege of knowing Erma 
better than most, and that has been certainly addressed in the 
statement I read for Senator Rockefeller.
  As I indicated, he is not able to be here today because he is 
recovering from back surgery, but he asked that I read this tribute to 
Erma, which I was so happy to do.
  We are recognizing the loss of Erma Byrd, and in so doing, we have to 
mention the greatness of Senator Byrd, running for his ninth term for 
the Senate--ninth term. It has never happened before. I marvel at what 
I have learned from Senator Byrd. I can remember as though it were 
yesterday when he decided he was no longer going to be the Democratic 
leader. Senator Dole wanted to do a luncheon in recognition of Senator 
Byrd over in the Russell Building. It was a wonderful occasion. We 
learned about Senator Byrd more than we had known. We thought we knew 
him well. But he told us that day that we would learn some things we 
didn't know, and we did.
  What a marvelous man. He could leave his home in Virginia for his 
home in West Virginia and back, 4 hours one way, 4 hours back, recite 
poetry over and back and never recite the same poem twice. He is a man 
with a mind that I have never seen before. He is an expert in 
Shakespeare. This man is so brilliant that he gave lectures here 
dealing with the line-item veto where he based his 10 lectures on the 
rise and fall of the Roman Empire. He could recite from memory every 
ruler that Rome had. His lectures were so dynamic that at the 
University of Nevada-Las Vegas, a professor taught classes to his 
graduate students based only on Senator Byrd's lectures.
  I can remember going to a parliamentary exchange in West Virginia 
where we exchanged with British Parliamentarians. Senator Byrd stood 
and recited from memory the reign of the British monarchs, their names, 
how they spelled their names, the years they were in power, and what 
they had done. Unbelievable.
  The reason I mention this is that Senator Byrd did not get there 
alone. He was supported--and that is an understatement--by Mrs. Byrd. 
His greatness suggests her greatness. I had the

[[Page S2411]]

good fortune to travel with the Byrds when her health was better. Their 
relationship is just as Jay Rockefeller said--people married for nearly 
60 years who were like teenagers--teenagers in love.
  I know Senator Byrd is a better person because of the person he chose 
to be his wife, but as a result of that, all of us are better people 
because of the influence Erma Byrd had on Robert C. Byrd.
  My thoughts go to Robert Byrd. I spoke with him yesterday. He was 
strong, resilient, saying this is what Erma would want, for him to be 
strong. I haven't heard his voice as powerful as it was yesterday, at 2 
or so in the afternoon, for a number of years because he suffered the 
pain his wife suffered. We all felt that. Her pain is past. Senator 
Byrd's pain is past.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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