[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 151 (Thursday, November 29, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7209-S7210]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      REMEMBERING RICHARD WILKINS

 Mr. LEE. Mr. President, Today I wish to pay tribute to my 
professor and my

[[Page S7210]]

friend Richard Wilkins who passed away on Monday. Richard was truly a 
renaissance man, a law professor turned international advocate who also 
enjoyed unique local notoriety for his 27 consecutive performances as 
Ebenezer Scrooge in the Hale Center Theater's annual production of A 
Christmas Carol.
  In the canon of literary classics, Charles Dicken's Scrooge is a 
beloved but unlikely hero, a selfish miser turned community benefactor. 
Wilkins embraced the dynamic nature of Scrooge's transformation and saw 
the role as an opportunity to convey much deeper lessons regarding the 
values of family and personal improvement. The Hale Center opened in 
1985 and cast then 32-year-old Richard as Scrooge, certainly unaware 
that they had found their star for the next 27 consecutive seasons.
  In 2005, Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, the queen of Qatar 
asked him to move to Qatar to lead an institute for family studies. He 
would not agree until she assured him he would be able to return to the 
Hale Center every Christmas season to take up his top hat and bathrobe 
to reprise his role as Scrooge. Richard loved delivering Scrooge's 
famous line ``I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it 
all the year. I will live in the past, the present, and the future.'' 
Those close to Richard undoubtedly agree that he took these words to 
heart, carrying the spirit of Christmas into all other aspects of his 
life.
  Richard graduated from my alma mater Brigham Young University Law 
School in 1979. He served as an assistant to my father, Solicitor 
General Rex Lee and argued several cases before the United States 
Supreme Court. Just 5 years after his graduation from BYU Law School he 
returned to teach constitutional law and civil procedure. He was a 
gifted public speaker, well known for his engaging lectures in the 
classroom and scholarly insights on the law. He had a unique 
intelligence that propelled him to prominence in the legal world and 
established him as a powerful voice the international community.
  Richards's greatest contribution to the world came as an 
international advocate for family values. His first exposure to the 
family values movement came in an academic effort to change the 
language the United Nations used to portray issues relating to the 
family. After engaging with international leaders on critical family 
values issues his academic curiosity turned into a personal mission. He 
traveled around the world presenting papers on the importance of 
traditional marriage, the need to protect children and the sanctity of 
life and other family centered topics. He served as the managing 
director of the Doha International Institute for Family Studies and 
Development for the nation of Qatar and founded the World Family Policy 
Center at BYU. His leadership as chairman of the Defend Marriage 
Coalition placed him at the forefront of Utah's debate over traditional 
marriage. Richard's fiery passion for causes related to traditional 
family values was matched by his warmth and love for those around him. 
He could disagree with individuals and groups but was never 
disagreeable.
  Richard Wilkins' life serves as an illustration of the renowned 
biblical charge ``Let your light so shine before men, that they may see 
your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.'' He was a 
man blessed with tremendous talents and he used those talents to bless 
all those with whom he came in contact, in his own community and around 
the world. Richard's global vision and reach brought the power of 
family values to the forefront of international discourse, particularly 
in developing nations striving to solidify a cultural identity. Sharon 
and I would like to express our deepest condolences to Richard's wife 
Melany, their four children Brooke, Brinton, Claire and Rex and their 
eight grandchildren.

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