[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 27 (Monday, March 1, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Page S856]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                        REMEMBERING SAM HAMILTON

 Mr. NELSON of Florida. Madam President, I speak today to 
commemorate the life of a true friend of Florida, Mr. Sam Hamilton, who 
passed away on Saturday. In September of last year, Mr. Hamilton became 
the Director of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. That was a 
fitting position for a man who had dedicated 30 years to protecting the 
Nation's natural resources and wildlife.
  Long before he was Director of Fish and Wildlife, Mr. Hamilton was 
committed to this country's wild spaces. Just last month, I was 
fortunate enough to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for an 
Everglades restoration project called the Picayune Strand, and Mr. 
Hamilton was there. It was a proud day for us all, but certainly for a 
man who had worked so long on Everglades issues and knew how much this 
project would benefit the endangered Florida panther. On that unusually 
cold morning, he spoke about his experience in the Youth Conservation 
Corps at 15 years old in Mississippi and how that molded his dedication 
to wildlife conservation. Mr. Hamilton started his career with the U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service in Texas. He moved up the ranks to become the 
southeast region's director based in Atlanta.
  During his time in Atlanta, he oversaw the Service's role in 
restoring the Everglades ecosystem. He took the Service's role of 
advising Federal agencies with regard to the Endangered Species Act 
seriously. He knew the ins and outs of the Apalachicola-Chatahoochee-
Flint River Basin, and worked to protect the threatened and endangered 
species that call that system home, like the gulf sturgeon and the 
purple bankclimber mussel.
  Mr. Hamilton was an avid fisher and hunter, and this gave him 
perspective on how to work with people from different backgrounds 
towards a common goal of conserving America's wildlife and the habitat 
that sustains it. I know that I echo my friends at the Department of 
the Interior like Secretary Ken Salazar and the Assistant Secretary for 
Fish and Wildlife and Parks Tom Strickland when I say that Mr. Hamilton 
will be sorely missed and his great contributions to my state and the 
country at large will not be forgotten. And to his family: wife Becky, 
sons Sam Jr. and Clay, and grandson Davis, you are in our thoughts 
during this difficult time. Thank you for helping your husband, father, 
and grandfather to serve this country.

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