[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 113 (Wednesday, July 13, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5073-S5074]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO JO ANN EMERSON

  Mr. BLUNT. Mr. President, today I wish to pay tribute to Jo Ann 
Emerson for her tireless dedication and service to both her State and 
her country. I had the pleasure of serving with Jo Ann in the House of 
Representatives. She has always been well-respected by her 
constituents, her colleagues in Congress, and the many individuals and 
families whose problems she dealt with as if they were her family. When 
Congresswoman Emerson left the Congress, she became the CEO of the 
National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, NRECA. She worked hard 
across the country for the kinds of communities and families she 
understands so well in our State of Missouri.
  It would be difficult for me to convey just how great an impact she 
has always had on those she encountered better than the remarks made by 
Jeffrey Connor, interim CEO, on June 13 at the NRECA summer board 
meeting.
  I ask unanimous consent to have his remarks printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

       Today marks the end of Jo Ann's tenure as CEO of NRECA, and 
     there is so much for which to thank her.
       Jo Ann has not walked through the doors of this building 
     since July 29th of last year--46 weeks ago.
       And I have said it many times since then: We miss our 
     leader, but we have not lacked for her leadership. Jo Ann's 
     influence on NRECA, our staff members, the work we do and the 
     privilege of serving our membership--those things remained at 
     the core of our mission--even in her physical absence.
       Jo Ann and I would start each day with five minutes to 
     reflect on the events of the day before and to contemplate 
     the day ahead. And I still make time for that five minutes 
     every day, for her counsel and guidance, to let her remind me 
     what is truly important in our work.
       NRECA has been through an incredible amount of change, with 
     Jo Ann leading the charge, joyfully.
       Jo Ann has made a remarkable difference in the partnership 
     between NRECA and our members. She enhanced our reputation in 
     Washington DC. And she brought with her: openness to new 
     ideas, an appetite for innovation, transparency and a highly-
     involved, very personal approach.
       It's remarkable to me that this organization is so 
     different after just three years, and that Jo Ann 
     accomplished that internal change even as she spent so much 
     time out with our membership. She was everywhere at once.
       And she worked constantly. She was available all the time, 
     accessible for any reason, to any individual on our team or 
     in our membership. She was ``Always On.''
       I've been fortunate to see that selfless work ethic in 
     action from the time I joined Jo Ann's congressional staff in 
     2003.
       She made decisions with the Three C's in mind and in order: 
     Her Conscience, Her Constituents, and Her Caucus.
       She fought for every job in the district. She fought for 
     the cost of every prescription drug. She fought for every 
     inch of four-lane highway. She fought for every veteran who 
     needed to see a specialist, every expectant mother who needed 
     a home nursing visit for pre-natal care. She fought for every 
     flood and tornado victim. She fought for every man and woman 
     called to active duty in the armed services.
       Her conscience demanded that she represent the members of 
     her community, regardless of how they voted or even if they 
     voted. She represented her whole constituency. No matter how 
     cantankerous. No matter how poor. No matter how rural.
       It is safe to say, and I think you know this too, that Jo 
     Ann Emerson did not choose politics. Politics chose Jo Ann 
     Emerson.
       Even her campaign slogan reflected her personal morality. 
     Election after election, it was, ``Putting People Before 
     Politics.'' And it made her a beloved leader as a member of 
     Congress.
       ``Work Days with Jo Ann'' in the district is one of the 
     best examples of how she would stand shoulder to shoulder 
     with her constituents. Of course, for Work Days, Jo Ann chose 
     to call the cattle auction at the sale barn, deliver UPS 
     packages, serve customers from the drive-through window at 
     McDonald's, and read the St. Louis Cardinals report on the 
     local sports radio station.
       Perhaps there were four C's: Conscience, Constituents, 
     Caucus, and Cardinals.
       Any way you describe her, the key to Jo Ann is her 
     perspective. When Jo Ann came to NRECA, she did so with a 
     great perspective on our membership. It was almost as though 
     she had gone from one congressional district in southern 
     Missouri to a bigger one--with 42 million people in it. She 
     knew exactly what to do, and she went right to work.
       Within six months, she had been up in a bucket truck, shot 
     an advocacy advertisement for a national audience, opened up 
     Facebook and social media to the staff, started a strategic 
     planning process, coined the term Co-op Nation, and laid down 
     a challenge to submit 1 million comments to the Environmental 
     Protection Agency on the Clean Power Plan.
       I bet I've heard Jo Ann say this a million times: 
     Perception is reality. It's usually my ``reality'' being 
     generally overruled by her perception of it.
       Jo Ann uniquely understands the importance of NRECA to our 
     members, the reason we exist. She appreciates the essential 
     partnership between NRECA and the communities we serve.
       If there is one way to summarize Jo Ann's contribution 
     here, it is to say that --at a critical moment in our 
     history--she changed NRECA's perception of the world and the 
     world's perception of NRECA, and therefore she changed our 
     reality.
       And so she lifted the NRECA International Program into a 
     position of prominence with our members and in Washington. 
     She began to build the reputation of NRECA around it.
       Jo Ann re-energized our communications channels and gave 
     our members a fresh voice in Washington. She tackled member 
     engagement from the ground up. She re-organized our approach 
     to the experience we offer to NRECA members.
       She relished walking up to a member and asking--point 
     blank--what do you think we can do better at NRECA?
       She understood that doing right is always more important 
     than being right. She challenged us to work collaboratively. 
     She made it possible for us to fail, and then showed us what 
     we could learn from failure. She opened the doors to the CEO 
     office, and she would sit and listen for a minute with anyone 
     who asked for her time. Anyone.
       Even small changes in perception make a big difference, 
     though, like the annual picnic we will enjoy this evening 
     where the NRECA Board members and the Arlington staff, 
     interns and contractors will have a chance to share a meal 
     and fellowship.
       Hers has been a short chapter in NRECA's long history, but 
     it is a most important one.
       We can thank Jo Ann for helping us realize the exciting 
     possibilities for a united, well-informed, ambitious and 
     innovative membership. For peeling back the layers of NRECA 
     in order to show our members that we are an organization full 
     of leadership. For leading

[[Page S5074]]

     us to a heartfelt mission of service. And for showing us how 
     to do our work energetically, humbly, and, as only she could, 
     joyfully.
       This is a different organization thanks to Jo Ann Emerson. 
     It is stronger yet more flexible. It thinks and communicates 
     differently. It possesses a greater degree of self-awareness. 
     It remains a beacon to others.
       That's her legacy: Jo Ann prepared us to expand the 
     relationship with our many partners-- relationships in which 
     we are the trusted resource, champion the cooperative cause 
     and inspire the future.
       Today, her story joins those of the CEOs who made her 
     leadership of this organization possible. Jo Ann would not 
     have had this opportunity if not for the courage and vision 
     of Clyde Ellis, Robert Partridge, Bob Bergland, and Glenn 
     English. We all, Jo Ann included, look to a future full of 
     promise at NRECA.
       And it is our greatest hope that Jo Ann will continue to 
     improve, and that she will have the opportunity to live a 
     life filled with the blessings of family and the chance to 
     reflect on her significant accomplishments and many wonderful 
     friendships built over a career well-spent in service to 
     others.
       On her behalf, thank you for allowing Jo Ann the privilege 
     of leading NRECA. I know--and she agrees--that this has been 
     the highest honor of her distinguished career.

                          ____________________