[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 25 (Thursday, February 25, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S792-S793]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       REMEMBERING VERNON HUNTER

  Mr. KAUFMAN. Mr. President, I rise once again to recognize one of 
America's great Federal employees. I have spoken before about the 
values that bind our Nation's public servants together. One of the most 
fundamental of these is sacrifice.
  We see this quality each day in the men and women who serve in 
uniform, both in the military and in law enforcement. They put 
themselves in harm's way to keep us all safe and protect our freedoms 
and way of life.
  Those who work in civilian roles also routinely take risks to their 
safety when performing their jobs, including the many Federal employees 
posted overseas and at our borders.
  This week, sadly, our Nation mourns the loss of a truly outstanding 
public servant who was killed last Thursday in the tragic attack 
against an office building in Austin, TX.
  Vernon Hunter was a 27-year veteran of the Internal Revenue Service 
and before that served for two decades in the U.S. Army.
  Earlier this month, I honored an IRS employee who made it possible 
for tens of millions to file their taxes electronically. At that time I 
spoke about how our IRS employees continually work hard to make it 
easier and less stressful for Americans to pay their taxes.
  Vernon was one of the great IRS managers who helped process tax 
filings and resolve issues for taxpayers. He had a reputation for being 
kind and full of life. He always wanted to help people solve their 
problems. His biography reads like a lesson in service and sacrifice.
  A native of Orangeburg, SC, Vernon enlisted in the U.S. Army after 
graduating from high school. He served two combat tours in Vietnam, at 
the same time facing discrimination at home when he was turned away 
from an all-White boarding house despite wearing the uniform. Vernon 
remained in the Army for 20 years, after which he worked for a short 
time in the private sector. However, as do many of our great Federal 
employees, he believed he had always been called to serve his Nation, 
and he returned to Federal employment nearly three decades ago when he 
began working for the IRS.
  Last week, Vernon lost his life when a small plane appeared out of 
the clear morning sky and struck his office

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building. The pilot also died in an act of apparent suicide, leaving 
behind a lengthy manifesto condemning corporations, the government, and 
singling out the IRS. Although 13 people were injured, Vernon was the 
only person killed in the violent explosion that ensued.
  Loyal, dedicated public servants such as Vernon bravely put 
themselves at risk each and every day through the mere act of doing 
their jobs. The attack in Austin was, of course, presaged by the 
Oklahoma City bombing and the anthrax attacks of 2001.
  Civilian Federal employees know there is always a risk. Many pass 
through metal detectors each morning coming to their offices. Mail is 
screened and emergency drills rehearsed. A Federal office building is a 
place of both dedicated work and unwitting risk in the name of service 
to country. Vernon, tragically, epitomized both.
  Vernon was 68 years old and is survived by his wife Valerie who also 
works for the IRS in the same office building, along with six children 
and stepchildren, seven grandchildren, and a great-grandchild. 
According to his son, Vernon was planning to retire from the IRS and go 
back to school. He wanted to teach children with special learning 
needs. Vernon was also an active member of the Greater Mountain Zion 
Baptist Church in Austin where he ushered and where his funeral will be 
held tomorrow.
  I hope my colleagues will join me in honoring Vernon Hunter and 
expressing our condolences to his family, friends, and those who worked 
with him at the IRS. He made the ultimate sacrifice in service of our 
Nation.

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