[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 190 (Wednesday, December 12, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S15228]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            IN CELEBRATION OF BRUNO NOWICKI'S 100TH BIRTHDAY

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize the 100th 
birthday of my friend Bruno Nowicki, of Warren, MI.
  Bruno has led a remarkable life. He was born in Sosnowiec, Poland, 
immigrating to the United States as a young man. His love for his 
native Poland is exceeded only by his love for Michigan and the United 
States of America. He launched a career as a journalist and writer in 
Pittsburgh and Chicago before moving to Detroit where he became a small 
businessman and raised a family. I had the privilege of appointing 
Bruno's granddaughter, Genevieve Nowicki, to serve as a Senate page in 
1991.
  Bruno is an expert chess player. He once played against Bobby 
Fischer, and chess is an activity that he continues to enjoy today. 
Years ago, Bruno urged me to examine the educational benefits of chess. 
We found that chess is proven to help students develop high order 
thinking skills, discipline and increased math skills. The Goals 2000: 
Education America Act includes language that Bruno Nowicki inspired, 
and that I pushed for in the Senate, that allows Federal funds for low-
achieving schools to be used for chess instruction as an enrichment 
program. This bill has helped bring chess into schools across America.
  In Michigan, Bruno has been instrumental in acquiring and placing 
sculptures that pay tribute to his Polish heritage. The sculptures 
appear across the State, from the southeast, where he lives, to 
northern Michigan, serving as a reminder of the rich Polish heritage of 
so many people in Michigan and of Poland's significant contributions to 
America's history and culture. A statue of Astronomer Nicolaus 
Copernicus sits in the Detroit Public Library. A sculpture of Frederic 
Chopin is placed in Interlochen, home to a world-renowned fine arts 
school. And a bust of Joseph Conrad graces the Hamtramck Public 
Library.
  Conrad wrote: ``Each blade of grass has its spot on earth whence it 
draws its life, its strength; and so is man rooted to the land from 
which he draws his faith together with his life.'' These words are 
certainly apt for Bruno. In his 100 years, Bruno has been rooted in 
both his Polish homeland and his American home in Michigan, drawing 
life and strength from each and making Michigan the better for it.
  The Polish birthday song ``Sto Lat'' includes the refrain ``I hope 
you live one hundred years.'' Bruno was never quite willing to settle 
for only 100 years. Now, as he enters his second century, I wish Bruno 
many more years of happiness, and I offer my congratulations and my 
thanks for his friendship and his contributions to his beloved America.

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