[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 71 (Wednesday, May 2, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E929]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              TRIBUTE ON THE RETIREMENT OF JOHN CONSTANCE

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                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 2, 2007

  Mr. HOYER. Madam Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to John Constance, 
who last week retired from the National Archives after 35 years of 
Federal Service.
  For 14 years, John served as the National Archives liaison to Capitol 
Hill, supervising congressional relations, public affairs, 
communications, and the agency's web program.
  A native of Baltimore, Maryland, John joined the Archives after 
graduating from the College of William and Mary in 1972.
  He served in a number of managerial positions with the agency, 
including Director of Policy and Program Analysis, and the Chief of 
Product Acquisition and Marketing for the National Audiovisual Center.
  In addition, Mr. Constance served in extended details to both the 
Office of Management and Budget and the Department of Education during 
his career, managing public affairs projects for both agencies.
  I am personally grateful to John for all the expertise and assistance 
he provided to me in the early 1990s during a time of extraordinary 
transformation for the National Archives, particularly when it 
established a second facility in College Park, Maryland to accommodate 
the growing volume of historical materials and improve services to 
researchers.
  This state-of-the-art facility, which has become known as ``Archives 
II,'' is a treasure to anyone who believes that a nation cannot 
progress unless it first understands its past. The historically 
significant records it maintains literally document the history of our 
great nation, and will serve as primary sources for countless scholars 
of history, culture, politics, and science for generations to come.
  All of us who embark on careers in public service hope that when the 
day comes to move on to other pursuits, we will be remembered for the 
good works we have rendered to the American people. John will be 
remembered for, of all things, his part in advancing our nation's 
sacred duty to remember its always rich, often glorious, and sometimes 
controversial history.

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