[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 98 (Monday, June 20, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E952]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING SUSAN H. WARNER

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. DONALD S. BEYER, JR.

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, June 20, 2016

  Mr. BEYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my constituent, Susan 
H. Warner, the former District Director for Virginia's 8th District.
  Susie Warner worked with great cheer and with a wry sense of humor 
for 25 and a half years as the district director for the congressional 
district just across the Potomac River. She sat at the helm for twenty-
four years for Congressman Jim Moran--his entire tenure--and the last 
year and a half before her retirement for me, graciously schooling the 
staff in the thorniest case work issues, how to handle every last 
constituent with grace, and how to keep a warm office environment to 
boot.
  During those 25 years, Susie was a pillar of her community in the Lee 
district of Fairfax County, and a fixture of political life in Northern 
Virginia. And I'm sure she will continue to be. So often, when a member 
of my staff meets a constituent the first thing they hear is ``Do you 
know Susie Warner? I love Susie Warner.'' Susie loves all of us right 
back, and often lets us know. ``How ya doin', kid?'' is a routine 
greeting for almost anyone. ``I love you babes,'' she told the staff, 
often as her parting farewell at the end of the workday.
  Susie's approach to problem-solving was old-fashioned, in the best 
sense of that phrase: She is friends with almost everyone she ever met. 
This included many, many liaisons in the federal government, who were 
indispensable to solving case work problems. She built those 
friendships over years of chats and commiseration, and at least one of 
her federal liaisons cried when told that Susie was retiring. She would 
draw upon that vast reservoir of friends and acquaintances in the 
community to find the answer for a constituent, or to identify and 
connect someone with exactly the right person in an organization who 
could fix the problem. She used her sweet talk and her smarts to solve 
many, many intractable problems for many people in need. Reciting the 
list of those she helped would keep me on the floor for hours if not 
days.
  I learned very quickly to value and rely on her sage advice and 
judgment, just as Congressman Moran had for all of the years in which 
they worked together. Her leadership will be sorely missed.

                          ____________________