[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 5 (Monday, January 12, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E47-E48]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING CONGRESSMAN ENI FALEOMAVAEGA OF AMERICAN SAMOA FOR HIS NEARLY 
      FOUR DECADES OF SERVICE TO THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. MADELEINE Z. BORDALLO

                                of guam

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, January 12, 2015

  Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the nearly four 
decades of service of my former colleague Congressman Eni Faleomavaega 
of American Samoa. After nearly four decades on Capitol Hill, American 
Samoa's longest serving Member of Congress and the first Asian Pacific 
American in U.S. history to become chairman and ranking member of the 
House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, bid 
farewell to colleagues and friends at a reception on Capitol Hill held 
in his honor on Wednesday, November 19th. The farewell reception for 
Faleomavaega included Members of Congress from the House and Senate, 
both Republicans and Democrats, ambassadors, foreign delegations, and 
their family members. They paid tribute to the man they call ``Our 
Eni,'' and did so by sharing memories from their years together. 
Congressman Eni F.H. Faleomavaega, beloved by so many on the Hill, 
first came to Capitol Hill in the 1970s and served as Chief of Staff to 
the late Paramount Chief A.U. Fuimaono, American Samoa's first 
Representative in Congress, and as staff counsel to the late 
Congressman Phil Burton of San Francisco before he became American 
Samoa's Representative in 1989.
   As a reflection of Faleomavaega's genuine kindness that touched so 
many and his bipartisan approach that reached across party lines, the 
reception was attended by many, including House Democratic Leader Nancy 
Pelosi and her husband Paul. Leader Pelosi shared memories of 
Faleomavaega in their early years with Congressman Phil Burton long 
before she and Faleomavaega were both elected to Congress. ``Eni, you 
are family from the Burtons on,'' Leader Pelosi stated. The Pelosis 
visited privately with Faleomavaega and his family, including his wife, 
Mrs. Hinanui Hunkin, and his daughter and son-in-law, Leonne and Fui 
Vakapuna.
   Current and former members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee 
also attended. Republican Senator Jeff Flake of Arizona, who first came 
to the Hill as a Representative from Arizona's 1st District in 2001, 
expressed his gratitude to Faleomavaega as a leader, mentor, and 
friend, including an unforgettable moment with Faleomavaega when the 
two were on their way to a hearing. Congressman Faleomavaega was in an 
elevator with a good number of Samoan visitors whom the Senator 
described as all resembling NFL linebackers. Faleomavaega immediately 
held the elevator door open when he saw his friend coming down the 
hallway. Mr. Flake squeezed in to the elevator but once the door 
closed, rather than ascend to the next floor, the elevator dropped a 
few feet and the entire group was trapped for about twenty minutes 
before they were rescued. Senator Flake joked that the irony of it all 
was that the hearing was on submerged lands. In his message to 
Faleomavaega, Senator Flake stated, ``Eni, I have such good memories of 
our time together. Thanks for being such a good friend and mentor to 
me, and such a good example of a disciple of Christ. I look forward to 
working with you on a range of issues in the future. With admiration, 
Jeff Flake, U.S. Senate.''
   Hawai`i Senator Mazie Hirono, reminisced with Faleomavaega about 
their early years in the House together and conveyed how much she will 
miss him being an honorary member of the Hawai`i State delegation. Over 
the years, because of his close ties to Hawai`i and friendship with the 
delegation, Faleomavaega was always invited to speak at the annual King 
Kamehameha Lei Draping Ceremony. The Senator also shared how, whenever 
Faleomavaega had the opportunity, he always reminded President Obama 
that Kahuku (Faleomavaega's alma mater) is better than Punahou (the 
President's alma mater). ``To my brother,'' Senator Hirono stated, 
``Thank you for all the kokua. Kahuku High, here I come! Take care, 
aloha.''
   In a surprise tribute to the Congressman, former Hawai`i Senator 
Daniel Akaka, whom Faleomavaega affectionately calls by his Hawaiian 
name, ``Kaniela'', also joined in on the reception from his home in 
Hawai`i via telephone. The pair, who for many years were the only 
Members of Congress with Polynesian ancestry and who were also founding 
members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, laughed 
about their imaginary ``Polynesian Caucus'' in which Senator Akaka was 
the chair and Faleomavaega was the secretary. Senator Akaka thanked his 
``brother'' Faleomavaega and his wife, Hina, for their years of 
friendship to him and his wife ``Aunty Millie'' all the way back to 
when Faleomavaega was first elected.
   Congressman Charles Rangel of New York and Congresswoman Grace 
Napolitano of California shared their admiration for Faleomavaega's 
decades of service, noting how much personal dedication and family 
sacrifice is required to be a Member of Congress. Congressman Rangel 
stated, ``Eni, the Congress will miss you so much and I even more'' and 
added that when Congress loses one of its devoted servants, a family 
gains a husband, father, and grandfather. Congresswoman Napolitano 
said, ``Eni, my friend, I will miss your smiling face'' and shared how 
being so far from home in Washington, D.C. makes her miss her 
grandchildren, to which Faleomavaega replied, ``I don't even know how 
to be a grandpa!'' The Congressman's youngest daughter, Leonne, who was 
only two years old when Faleomavaega was first elected to Congress and 
who is now a wife and mother, smiled and gave her dad a big hug.
   Republican Congresswoman, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, former chair of the 
House Foreign

[[Page E48]]

Affairs Committee, said ``I'm gonna miss you, amigo!'' as Faleomavaega 
introduced her to all the famous Samoans pictured in photos around his 
office. When they came to a picture of Faleomavaega with Dwayne ``The 
Rock'' Johnson, she asked, ``Do you really know Dwayne Johnson?'' 
Without skipping a beat, the Congressman replied, ``Of course I do. His 
mom is my cousin!'' Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, who represents Florida's 27th 
District including Miami, where Dwayne Johnson lives, said, ``Everyone 
is your cousin, Eni. And he's my constituent!'' When they came across 
Faleomavaega's centerpiece photo from the 1960s featuring him with 
Elvis in Hawai`i, the Congresswoman laughed, ``Elvis is Samoan too? You 
do know everybody Eni, even Elvis! I already like you. But now I like 
you even more.''
   Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo of Guam brought her entire staff to 
bid farewell to Faleomavaega. ``Hafa Adai! To our friend Eni from the 
Guam office! I will always remember our many years together in 
Congress. You were a dear friend and you helped me along with advice 
during my early years! One memory I will take with me is our CODEL to 
American Samoa. What a fiesta that was!!! Love, Madeleine and from all 
your friends on Guam!''
   Other Members, including Congressman Steve Chabot (R-OH), 
Congressman David Cicilline (D-RI), Congressman John Conyers (D-MI), 
Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY), Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), 
Congressman Mike Honda (D-CA), Congressman Gregory Meeks (D-NY), 
Congresswoman Grace Meng (D-NY), Congressman Nick Rahall (D-WV), 
Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan (D-MP), Congressman Brad 
Sherman (D-CA), and former Congressman Solomon Ortiz (D-TX) also 
attended Faleomavaega's farewell reception.
   Several who attended wrote the following in Faleomavaega's 
guestbook.
   ``You are my buddy and you always will be!''--Congressman Dana 
Rohrabacher (R-CA).
   ``To a dear dear friend. You have made a giant difference in the 
lives of so many! Thank you, thank you so much, Sheila!''--
Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX).
   ``I've really enjoyed serving with you. You've done a great job!''--
Congressman Buck McKeon (R-CA).
   ``The mark of success is not measured in what you've accomplished 
but rather in the lives that you have touched. Eni you've touched so 
many lives in your years of service, you're the definition of success. 
Be well my friend.''--Congressman Ami Bera (D-CA).
   ``Hermano, you are the best. We will see you soon!''--Congressman 
Henry Cuellar (D-TX).
   Ambassadors and delegations from the Asia-Pacific region, including 
Korea, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Kazakhstan, Taiwan, Pakistan, 
and Uzbekistan, also expressed their gratitude to Faleomavaega.
   From Myanmar: ``On behalf of the Myanmar Government, I wish to 
extend our sincere gratitude to you for your kind contribution toward 
promoting Myanmar-U.S. relations as well as for your country.''
   From Pakistan: ``The Embassy of Pakistan deeply appreciates gracious 
support received by your office. Thank you.''
   From Vietnam: ``Brother Eni, we love you so much. Thank God for 
helping us meet each other on the earth!''
   Also from Vietnam: ``We'll keep you forever in our heart, millions 
of Vietnamese will do.''
   Faleomavaega expressed his gratitude and appreciation to all who 
attended. ``I am deeply appreciative of the opportunity to have worked 
with such distinguished leaders during my time in Washington, DC. The 
memories we built are priceless and I wish my friends and colleagues 
and the people of American Samoa continued success and happiness,'' 
Faleomavaega concluded.
   As you can see his years of service have had a tremendous impact on 
U.S. policy in American Samoa and on U.S. foreign policy across the 
globe. I wish him the best in his future endeavors.

                          ____________________