[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 127 (Monday, September 8, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1338-E1339]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           THANKING MY STAFF

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. FRANK R. WOLF

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 8, 2014

  Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, it has been my honor and privilege to serve in 
this body for 34 years. I have come to the floor countless times over 
the years to speak out and help give a voice to the voiceless for 
humanitarian causes, to raise national and international policy issues, 
such as getting our nation's spending under control, bringing attention 
to national security threats, like terrorism and cyberattacks, and 
focusing on ways to protect children and families from the scourge of 
legalized gambling. I also have raised issues important to the people 
of the 10th District of Virginia, such as improving transportation, 
preserving historic sites and educating the public about health threats 
from Lyme disease.
  Today, though, I take this opportunity to pay tribute to the dozens 
of men and women who have been on my staff over the years. As every 
Member knows, our jobs in the people's House would be next to 
impossible without the staff that works with us. I certainly would not 
have been able to accomplish so many of the projects and public policy 
initiatives I have been able to do without them by my side.
  And in all honesty, if it were not for some loyal and dedicated 
staffers who stuck with me during my first term--when the growing pains 
of a new congressional office are the toughest--I am not sure I would 
have been re-elected early in my career.
  I want to single out my first press secretary, Stephanie Bolick, who 
later became my chief of staff, or as we called it back then, my ``AA'' 
or administrative assistant. She may have been among the first women in 
a Hill office in the early 1980s to break that glass ceiling. I was 
blessed to find Stephanie, who helped me focus my work and build a 
foundation of public service. She was wise beyond her years and I am 
forever grateful to her for her counsel and for being there from the 
start.
  I have been fortunate to have two long-tenured chiefs of staff. 
Charlie White was my top aide for 14 years, until cancer took his life 
in the summer of 2000. A retired Navy captain and submariner, Charlie 
had a heart of service and not only helped manage my office, but became 
a dear friend. A humble man, he had a way of putting everyone around 
him at ease. Even in the pain of illness, he inspired us by his grace. 
Charlie was a ``Johnny Appleseed'' kind of a guy. He was a mentor to 
young staffers and sowed seeds of goodness and kindness to scatter to 
all those we meet in our lives.
  I believe it was providential when Dan Scandling followed Charlie as 
my chief of staff. Dan had been the top aide to my Virginia colleague 
Herb Bateman, who died suddenly just four months before he was to 
retire from the House. Dan was just the right person at the right time. 
A trusted and loyal adviser and friend, he has been with me since late 
2000.
  When I would tell Dan that we needed to jump on a plane and get to a 
place in the world where people were suffering or war was imminent, he 
made it happen. He was there with me to document the trip in photos and 
write the report that I would share with House colleagues, leadership 
and the administration to help get the ball rolling to focus attention 
on a humanitarian cause. A superb journalist, Dan also has served as my 
press spokesman. He is indefatigable and a true professional and I 
cannot thank him enough for his counsel and public service.
  I was a former staffer, both on Capitol Hill and in the executive 
branch. I know the daily grind--writing mail, stuffing envelopes, and 
answering phone calls from disgruntled constituents. Staffers are 
consumed by long hours with modest pay. Yet I also know how rewarding 
this job can be. So many of my staff over the years have told me that 
being in a position to help make people's lives better was really what 
counted the most.
  I always said I wanted a staff that was on par with the late Senator 
Ted Kennedy's top-notch staff. There is no doubt in my mind that my 
staff was. I have no hesitation in saying I have had the best staff on 
Capitol Hill.
  I have tried to treat my staff as family, whether they worked for me 
for only a year before heading off to law school or graduate school, or 
stayed with me for many years. I actually had two staffers who worked 
for me for more than 25 years. Judy McCary and Janet Shaffron served as 
the backbone of my office.
  Judy was my longtime District director and worked more cases, 
particularly immigration cases, than you can count. Through the years I 
could rarely go anywhere in my District without someone thanking me for 
something Judy or someone else on my District staff did to solve a 
problem.
  Judy, and all my District staff, were tireless--and continue to be 
tireless--advocates for the people of the 10th District, regardless of 
political strife. When you called my District staff with a problem, it 
didn't matter if you were a Democrat, an Independent or a Republican. 
You were a constituent and they were there to help.
  Janet Shaffron was my legislative director for 28 years. She had an 
encyclopedic knowledge of every issue and every vote and was 
responsible for compiling my complete annual voting record, which I 
published for constituents. She was a whiz at parliamentary procedure 
and an extremely gifted writer and editor. Nothing rattled Janet. I 
don't think she ever had a bad day--even when she wore two hats and 
filled in as chief of staff, helping hold the staff together when 
Charlie became ill. My Washington staff adored Janet. She always was 
willing to help with a letter or speech. She was a mentor and always 
knew when to give a young staffer an encouraging word. And she

[[Page E1339]]

was always willing to tell me when she thought I was going in the wrong 
direction.
  Judy and Janet stood with me through thick and thin. They were there 
in the early years during the fits and starts of a new office and in 
the years that followed helping celebrate legislative or district 
successes. Both beat me to retirement. I cannot thank them enough.
  I also want to talk about what is perhaps the hardest job in any 
congressional office--that of scheduler. I have had some great ones. 
Fortunately, they were blessed with patience and great attitudes 
because managing my schedule--and, of course, me--was never easy. I 
know I probably never told them enough how much I appreciated them and 
their loyalty. So today I say thank you to those incredible staffers.

  As I approach retirement, I have reflected on the many issues with 
which I have become involved, and perhaps the one with the greatest 
visibility--especially on the international level--has been my work in 
the area of human rights. When I came to Congress, human rights, 
religious freedom and speaking out for the voiceless were not on my 
radar. But a trip to famine-riddled Ethiopia in 1984 when I held an 
emaciated child dying of hunger brought me new perspective. And while I 
was not happy with Charlie when he infamously told The Washington Post: 
``He does [local] transportation so he can do [international] human 
rights,'' he was probably on to something.
  Working on human rights and religious freedom issues has been some of 
my most rewarding work in Congress and right there with me were 
probably a dozen staffers who handled my human rights and foreign 
affairs portfolio over the years. I believe I have made a difference, 
but I couldn't have done it without the help of those staffers, who, to 
a person, shared my passion for humanitarian causes. They spent hours 
upon hours upon hours writing letters, preparing speeches, planning 
hearings, making phone calls, advising on strategy, meeting with 
dissidents and the oppressed and listening to tragic stories. I am 
proud of their work to help change lives for the better and to give a 
voice to the voiceless and I express my deep appreciation to each one.
  I would be remiss if I didn't mention Lucy Norment, who took over for 
Judy, and Tom Culligan, who replaced Janet, for the work they have done 
since assuming new roles in the office. Thank you.
  I tried to build camaraderie among my staff and believe our successes 
can be attributed to teamwork and the Harry Truman adage that it's 
amazing what you can accomplish if you don't care who gets the credit. 
Everyone who has worked for me--whether answering phones, doing data 
entry, tracking legislation, formulating policy, working cases or 
managing my offices--has made a difference.
  They also made my job easier, and for that, I am eternally grateful.
  I want to take this opportunity to submit the names of all my staff 
through the years for history to see:

       Tom Alexander, Jennifer Allen, Elyse Bauer Anderson, Julia 
     Angelotti, Anne McClure Babson, Torrey Babson, Evan Baehr, 
     Laurie Battle, John Beed, Andrew Bender, Nancy Suzich 
     Bennett, Pat Bennett, Abby Berg, Debbie Blinn, Stephanie 
     Bolick, Johnathan Bolls, Lisa Boothe, Jim Boyle, Kellie 
     Malloy Boyle, Shelly Bressler.
       Tom Brooke, Matthew Brown, Karen Burke, Teresa Burney, Jim 
     Burroughs, Bridget Bustillos, Mary Ann Cannon, Jane Cantus, 
     Dan Caprio, Mike Carlin, Jessica Carlton, Ted Cartwright, 
     Stacey Chuma, Bob Clark, John Cole, Barbara Comstock, Melinda 
     Bohn Conner, Mary Ann Cook, Evan Corcoran.
       Pat Cox, Judy Hammond Craun, Donna Crowley, Tom Culligan, 
     John Cusey, Jack Czerwinski, Chris Darling, Bryan Deoms, Dave 
     Dettoni, Karen Foster Dick, Jeffrey Dingman, Brett Dody, 
     Bennett Donovan, James Dornan III, Philip Draper, Ben Dutton, 
     David Farajollahi, James Farel, Amy Farrel.
       Susan Feaster, Karen Feaver, Larry Fineran, Marna Fisher, 
     Dot Fleshman, Scott Flipse, Lee Kerr Fonvielle, Karen Foster, 
     James Freik, Johnathon Friel, Tom Fulcher, James Gallagher, 
     James Gallahan, Fernande Gebs, Jill DiPuccio Giles, Geoff 
     Gleason, Shannon Green, JT Griffin, Kristin Erb Griffin.
       Suzanne Grimsley, Steve Hall, Andrew Hart, Susan Bullard 
     Harmon, Buzz Hawley, Diana Haynes, Nancy Bennett Haynes, Bob 
     Healey, Nancy Bruce Herbolsheimer, Tom Herrity, Heather 
     Hixson Hershberger, Elise Ho Phuong, Sewell Hoff, Elizabeth 
     Hoffman, Lynne Holden, Mike Holtz, Deborah Horness, Robert 
     Houston, Lori-Beth Feld Hua.
       Wayne Huggins, Carol Hughes, Peyton Hughes, Rosanne Dupras 
     Hughes, Anne Campbell Huiskes, Wes Irvin, Michael Jackson, 
     Jennifer Jacobsen, Jessica Jelgerhuis, Kevin James, Laurie 
     Jenkins, James Jennings III, Fay Johnson, Gail Hoskins 
     Johnson, William Troy Jones, Virginia Jones, Andrew Kauders, 
     Cindy Rockholt Klapmust, Ramona Kledzik.
       Heather Kolasch, Stephen Korfonta, Jill Kriser, Patrick 
     Larkin, Mira Lezell, Caitlin Lietzan, Michael Linster, Marge 
     Lynch, Tom Lynch, Charlie Lyons, Anne MacKenzie, Elizabeth 
     Maier, Kellie Mallory, Christina Mangano, Will Marlow, Jeff 
     Mascott, Robert McAdam, Judy McCary, Cheryl McCullough.
       Mark McElwee, Barbara McGuire, Meghan Wedd McGuire, Joe 
     McNulty, Justin Mentzer, Becky Earle Middleton, Molly Jurmu 
     Miller, Bill Mims, Janet Minkler, Kenneth Minnick, Jen Foth 
     Moody, Donald Morrissey, Tom Morr, Roger Morse, Will 
     Moschella, Stacy Neal, Gracie Nelson, Debra Nesbitt, Ed 
     Newberry.
       Lucy Norment, William Palmer, Hae Park, Keith Pavlick, 
     Angela Pecario, Kristin Peck, Anne Peters, Brendan Pevarski, 
     Jillian Pevo, Rita Pfeiffer, Mark Planning, Ivan Plis, Ann 
     Potacnak, Jan Powell, Brianna Puccini, Sara Boney Ratcliff, 
     Elizabeth Becker Reiter, Denise Richardson, Ralph Rinaldi, 
     Pat Russell.
       Melinda Sadler, Colin Samples, Tom Santaniello, Chris 
     Santora, Dan Scandling, Courtney Haller Schlieter, Meredith 
     Schultz, Steve Schwartz, Janet Shaffron, Jill Shatzen, Neil 
     Siefring, Sharon Snyder, Tim Starr, Dave Stegmaier, Kalinda 
     Stephenson, Mike Stevens, Samantha Stockman, Katy Summerlin, 
     Julie Sussman, Laura Swett, Melissa Temeles.
       Susan Thompson, Randy Tift, Clark Unger, Sharon Vasky-
     Smith, Chris Walker, Linda Rollins Wallace, Jeff Walton, 
     Elizabeth Ward, Brinton Warren, George Webb, Charlie White, 
     Laura White, David Whitestone, Stiles Wilkins, Melinda 
     Wilson, Craig Whitham, Sean Woo, Ralph Wunder, John Zemaitis.

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