[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 63 (Tuesday, April 28, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S4800]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          REMEMBERING AL MYERS

  Mr. LEAHY. Madam President, I am both proud and saddened today to 
salute Mr. Al Myers, a beloved teacher at Williston Central School in 
Vermont who recently passed away after being injured while working on 
the set of a school play. Mr. Myers was best known as a popular 
educator who was remembered by former school principal Lynn Murray as 
being ``brilliant with children.'' As a U.S. Senator, I remember Mr. 
Myers bringing students to Washington, DC every year. He truly wanted 
them to understand the importance of living in the world's greatest 
democracy.
  In memory of Mr. Myers, I ask unanimous consent that the following 
memorial article, by Matt Ryan of the Burlington Free Press, be printed 
into the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

            [From the Burlington Free Press, Apr. 27, 2009]

                          Myers' Death Mourned

                             (By Matt Ryan)

       Williston.--Parents, students and teachers at Williston 
     Central School are mourning the death of a popular educator 
     who fell from a ladder and suffered a severe head injury 
     while working on the set of the school's production of ``The 
     Wizard of Oz.''
       Al Myers was found in the auditorium Friday morning and 
     transported to Fletcher Allen Hospital where he underwent 
     surgery. He died Saturday morning, according to the school.
       Julie Longchamp, the producer of the school play, worked 
     with Myers for 20 years.
       ``He was an extraordinary man with a lot of passion,'' 
     Longchamp said. ``Everyone has come together and we're going 
     to be putting Al's show on.''
       Longchamp prepared for the play near Myers' desk, in their 
     office at the school Sunday evening. In the auditorium, 
     parents and students quietly worked on the play's set and 
     costumes, the Emerald City and Glinda's pink dress. Tickets 
     for the show, which is scheduled for this weekend, sold out 
     April 1.
       ``The play the Wizard of Oz will go on as scheduled under 
     the direction of Julie Longchamp,'' principal Walter Nardelli 
     wrote in an e-mail to parents. ``Al and his family would have 
     wanted it that way.''
       Counselors will be available today for students, and staff 
     will attempt to keep the day as normal as possible, Nardelli 
     said. He encouraged children to go to school. Students were 
     on break last week.
       The school was coordinating with Champlain Valley Union 
     High School to support former students who worked with Myers, 
     Nardelli said.
       Myers had directed many theater productions over the years. 
     Former students and parents of students posted thoughts about 
     the teacher on several Facebook pages dedicated to his 
     memory. They wrote about working with Myers on plays like, 
     ``Annie Get Your Gun,'' ``Fiddler on the Roof'' and 
     ``Macbeth,'' and catching his infectious love for music and 
     theater.
       ``Mr. Myers was a wonderful teacher who took me under his 
     wing as he did to so many others,'' David Stephens of 
     Burlington wrote. ``I remember the sing-a-longs that he had 
     in class where he would pull out his guitar and would have 
     100 percent participation because it was so much fun. I can 
     still remember a bunch of the songs we would sing, `Feeling 
     Groovy,' `Blowin' in the Wind.' ''
       Former Williston Central School principal Lynn Murray 
     remembered Myers being ``brilliant with children.''
       ``In my entire career, I have never met anyone with so much 
     heart, so much talent and so giving a nature,'' Murray wrote.
       According to one Facebook page, a celebration of his life 
     will be held at noon, May 16 at the Williston Central School. 
     As of 9 p.m. Sunday, more than 450 people joined the ``In 
     Memory of Al Myers'' Facebook page.
       ``He's going to be a very, very missed man,'' Longchamp 
     said.

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