[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 182 (Wednesday, November 30, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8062-S8063]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     RETIREMENT OF SYLVIA GILLESPIE

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I want to take a few moments to thank a 
remarkable woman on my staff. Sylvia Gillespie, in my Springfield 
office, is retiring after 12 years. When you walk into that office in 
Springfield, Sylvia is the first person you see, and her smile has made 
thousands of people feel welcome. Her heart is as warm as her smile.
  Sylvia is from the South Side of Chicago. She likes to say, ``The 
same as Michelle Obama.'' She went to Austin O. Sexton Elementary 
School on South Langley Avenue and grew up on the same streets where 
that infamous street gang, the Blackstone Rangers, made a lot of 
trouble. But she survived that experience and went on to make a life in 
the service of others.
  When she looks back at her life, Sylvia gets a little choked up and 
she says, how did I go from being that little girl from the ghetto to 
working for a Senator. Well, the answer is very simple. Sylvia 
Gillespie cares about other people. She has helped countless people 
during the 12 years she has worked in my office. From helping people 
get their passports so they wouldn't miss a family wedding in some 
foreign country to speaking on behalf of constituents who ran into 
trouble with Federal agencies such as the Internal Revenue Service, 
Sylvia has been such a positive force in the lives of so many people.
  The work she is most proud of, and the one thing she will talk to you 
about, is what she has been working on for the last 2 years--helping 
families in Illinois stay in their homes. Sylvia has helped dozens of 
families stay in their homes during the mortgage crisis when they 
thought they had lost everything through foreclosure. She would sit on 
conference calls with banks for hours at a time, refusing to take no 
for an answer. You don't want to cross Sylvia Gillespie when she is 
fighting for someone she believes in.
  Ask her why and she explains:

       I just felt like we just couldn't lose one more home. If I 
     can prevent a family from losing their home by being on the 
     phone with the bank for 3 hours, I would do it.

  And she would do it. Sometimes she would persevere long after the 
homeowners had given up. In one particular case, a hardworking mom with 
two kids had done everything right.
  She played by the bank's rules, but she was still only days away from 
watching the home she loved be auctioned off, and she was ready to give 
up. But Sylvia wasn't. Sylvia asked:

       Have you ever seen a mustard seed? That's all you need: 
     Faith the size of a mustard seed to get through this.

  That was Sylvia. And after a long and grueling process, guess what. 
Sylvia prevailed. The woman received her loan modification. With 
Sylvia's help, that mother and her children will be spending this 
holiday season right where they want to be--in their own home.
  That mom is just one of the many Illinoisans who are going to join me 
in being sad when Sylvia decides to retire.
  When Sylvia is not working hard in my office, she spends a lot of 
time at the Abundant Faith Christian Church. She loves that church. She 
has invited me there on Sundays, and she really gets into it. She is a 
woman of faith, and she is a great singer. She throws herself, heart 
and soul, into their services. Every Sunday morning she and a few 
others cook up a breakfast for the community people who live near the

[[Page S8063]]

church. They serve the families of patients in a nearby hospital and 
homeless people who come over from the neighborhood shelters.
  Let me tell you another thing about Sylvia. She is a great cook and a 
great baker. If you ask anyone in my Springfield office, they will tell 
you that her cookies and cakes are the best.
  We have seen Sylvia dressed up in full regalia as a clown, which she 
does once a while to bring cheer and fun to parties and events in her 
community. She is a happy person and it is a joy to be around her.
  She also has a great talent for decorating. One of her last 
responsibilities in my office, before her official last day before 
retirement, was setting up the Christmas decorations. Thanks to her, 
our office in Springfield is in full swing for the holidays.
  We are going to miss Sylvia in our office. I speak for everyone there 
and countless people when I thank Sylvia for the outstanding 12 years 
of service she has dedicated to helping people in Illinois.
  Sylvia is the mother of two beautiful grown daughters, Danette and 
Genaire. She is a proud grandmother of three grandchildren, ages 15, 
13, and 11. She now has to make the tough choice of which daughter she 
will join and live with. They both want her. She has to decide whether 
to go with Danette in Portland, OR, or stay with Genaire in Davenport, 
IA. Whatever her choice, she told me there is one thing she wants to 
make sure of--that she has a reservation for the ticket of Barack 
Obama's second inaugural. She made the first, and she wants to be at 
the second one too. I made that promise to her.
  Wherever she goes, I know Sylvia Gillespie will continue to be an 
inspiration to everyone she meets, and will, as long as she lives, 
reach out a helping hand to people who need a little assistance, a 
little encouragement, and that great Sylvia Gillespie smile.
  Sylvia, thanks for 12 years of wonderful service in our office in 
Springfield. I wish you and your family the very best for many years to 
come.

                          ____________________