[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 118 (Friday, July 31, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2143]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         IN HONOR OF BILLY POST

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 31, 2009

  Mr. FARR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of Billy 
Post, a remarkable American who died last Sunday after nearly 89 years 
in Big Sur. He was a renaissance man, who both helped build Big Sur 
into one of the planet's premier visitor destinations, and preserve its 
wild landscapes, vibrant community, and unique history. But over and 
above all of his life's accomplishments, he stood out as a profoundly 
humble and gentle man with a keen sense of old fashioned sense of 
courtesy and manners. All of us who had the pleasure of meeting Billy 
came away awed by this man of history.
  Billy Post was born in Big Sur before the highway was built that 
connected Big Sur to Carmel. His great-grandfather, William Brainard 
Post, came from Connecticut as one of the first American settlers of 
Big Sur in the 1860s. His great-grandmother, Anselma Onesmio, was a 
native Costanoan from Carmel Valley. I once heard Billy tell the story 
that his great grandmother's great grandmother had seen the first 
Spanish ships to approach the Monterey Bay and thought they were giant 
white birds. Billy Post grew up on his family's original homestead 
ranch, rising every morning at 4:00 to tend livestock and milk cows 
before heading to school. He attended UC Davis for a time but WWII cut 
short his dreams of becoming a veterinarian. Billy joined the Marine 
Corps and spent time in the Pacific at Okinawa, Saipan, Tinian, and was 
one of the first Americans to see Nagasaki following the atomic bomb 
attack.
  Once Billy Post returned home he helped build the Rancho Sierra Mar 
cafe and campground that his family ran on the ranch. He also worked 
many years for Caltrans as a highway electrician, paying close 
attention to the natural world around him, the wild creatures and 
plants and especially horses. He combined these passions by offering 
pack trips on horseback into Big Sur's wilderness backcountry. He 
married in his mid thirties and had two daughters named Gayle and 
Rebecca. His marriage later ended and he raised his two daughters as a 
single father. In 1969, Billy married Luci Lee, the love of his life 
and mother of two daughters from a previous relationship. Together, 
they built a life with their four girls, and eventually moved into a 
new house on the Ranch nearby.
  Over the years, it grew difficult to hold onto the old style of 
ranching. In the early 1980s, Billy and Luci entertained the idea of 
converting the ranch into a full service inn that would preserve the 
integrity of his family's ranch and the region's history. A handshake 
and a glass of Jack Daniels sealed the deal. Since Billy Post had 
operated heavy machinery almost all his life and could fix just about 
anything, he did much of the initial grading work for the new Inn. 
Opened in 1992, the Post Ranch Inn has developed into one of the top 
spa resorts in the world known particularly for its innovative 
architecture that embraces the dramatic beauty of its coastal Big Sur 
setting. Much of this grew from Billy Post's own personal vision. To 
the end of his life, he remained a regular fixture around the Ranch 
grounds, making it a point to join guests at breakfast at the Inn's 
Sierra Mar restaurant several times a week to share lore about Big 
Sur's land and people.
  He was preceded in death by his daughter Nancy Downing. He is 
survived by his beloved wife Luci, three daughters, Linda J. Lee, Gayle 
Forster, and Rebecca Post; seven grandchildren, Pamela Patterson, 
Gregory Paley, Anna Vargas, Gabriel Forster, and Richard, Shane and 
Daniel Forster; and seven great grandchildren.
  Madam Speaker, I would like to extend our nation's deep gratitude for 
Billy Post's brave service to the United States Marine Corps, and to 
his own community. I know I speak for every Member of Congress in 
offering our condolences to Luci, his three surviving daughters, his 
seven grandchildren, and all Post family members and friends upon this 
great loss.

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