[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 53 (Tuesday, April 14, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E478]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      TRIBUTE TO HONOR THE LIFE OF THE HONORABLE KEITH C. SORENSON

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ANNA G. ESHOO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 14, 2015

  Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life and extraordinary 
work of Keith C. Sorenson. Born on September 4, 1921, in Elsinore, 
Utah, he died in Redwood City, California, on March 20, 2015, at the 
age of 93.
   Keith Sorenson was born and raised on a farm in Utah, the youngest 
of four children. He said ``There's nothing better than living on a 
farm. If you ever really work on a farm, anything else you ever do 
seems easy.'' He earned his undergraduate and law degrees from the 
University of Utah, where he met his wife, Maxine Swinson. The family 
moved to Redwood City, California, and Keith joined a local law firm.
   Keith Sorenson joined the San Mateo County District Attorney's 
office in 1949, and became District Attorney in 1953. He held the post 
and that of County Counsel for three decades until his retirement in 
1982. During his tenure he hired Sandra Day O'Connor, a Stanford Law 
School graduate who was unable to obtain employment as an attorney 
because she was a woman. He helped found the One Hundred Club, an 
organization that supports the families of slain police officers.
   Keith Sorenson was widely known and respected for his integrity and 
strong work ethic. Current District Attorney Stave Wagstaffe praised 
him, saying ``He instilled in all of us the standard that justice and 
doing the right thing was the only choice for a prosecutor and that 
other considerations such as politics were irrelevant.''
   I am deeply saddened by Keith Sorenson's passing. He was a highly 
regarded public official, a man of enormous integrity, a trusted friend 
and mentor, and a source of great inspiration to me and countless 
others.
   Mr. Speaker, I ask the entire House to join me in honoring the 
extraordinary life and contributions of Keith Sorenson, a great and 
good man, and in extending our most sincere condolences to his son, 
Thomas. Keith Sorenson made San Mateo County, the state of California 
and our country stronger and better, and he will be missed by all who 
had the good fortune to know him.

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