[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 120 (Monday, July 17, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4018-S4019]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                       Tribute to Stefanie Mohler

  Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I thank the distinguished Senator from 
Oregon, Senator Merkley, for allowing me a few extra minutes of his 
time ahead of his speech. I appreciate his courtesy, and I will pay him 
back.
  Ironically, I am thanking him for giving me time to make a speech I 
have never wanted to make. In fact, I have three times canceled the 
time I had asked for to make this speech in the last month because when 
it came time to make it and I opened those doors to come down here, I 
couldn't quite do it. I couldn't quite do it because, every once in a 
while, something happens in your career with a loved one or friend or 
cohort who is so close to you and so meaningful to you that to talk 
about it is an emotional thing to do.
  Such is the occasion tonight for me to pay tribute to Stefanie 
Mohler, who is my scheduler and has been for years. She came to work 
for me when I was a Member of the Senate. She has worked for me time 
and again in the U.S. Senate, except for the one time she left me to go 
work for George Bush--and I understand that. That was a higher pay 
grade than mine.
  Stefanie was a young lady working for a Congressman from her hometown 
in Florida when I came to Washington. She wasn't married. She had a 
wonderful family and lived at home with her folks. She applied for a 
job as a scheduler for me and came to work for us.
  I ran a pretty large company. I had about 1,000 independent 
contractors and 250 employees. I know a good worker when I see one. 
Stefanie was the best. But she had that quality beyond just being the 
best. She cared about every single thing she did and every single 
person whom she helped and every single person whom she couldn't help. 
She grew in the job, and she made me a better Congressman and, later, a 
better Senator.
  She came to me about 18 months ago and said: I have some news for 
you. I am pregnant. I am pregnant with identical twins.
  I was so excited for her and her husband because she wanted more than 
anything else in the world to have a family. My wife and I had a party 
for her at Christmas in December, and the two babies came in the early 
part of this year. They are beautiful. She is a wonderful mother. But 
she has stayed, and she has worked. Her mom has come in and helped her 
do the chores at home as she continued to fulfill her commitment to me. 
I thank her so much on the floor of the Senate today for that.
  She is married to a great guy named Chase Mohler. Let me tell you a 
little bit about Chase.
  All of us at one time or another in our lives have fallen in love. 
You know what it feels like to fall in love. You also know what it 
looks like to see somebody who is in love. You can't describe it, but 
there is a glow. It is just something that is there.
  I was in Jacksonville, FL, with Saxby Chambliss, waiting to come back 
to Washington when Stefanie was

[[Page S4019]]

coming back from taking Chase to meet her family in Florida. When she 
turned the corner in an airport concourse coming toward the planes, I 
could tell from the glow on her face and the look on her face that 
something special had happened in her life.
  I said: Stefanie, what are you so happy about?
  She said: I have found a husband. I am going to marry him. He asked 
me to marry him.
  I was so happy for her and so happy for Chase because I had met him. 
They had dated while she was working in my office and later married. 
Chase works for the State Department and has been serving here in 
Washington. But he got a promotion, and he is going to the North 
Carolina coast, and he is going to take Stefanie with him.
  I am losing the best person I have ever had doing what Stefanie has 
done for me. He married the best person I have ever seen, and she is 
doing everything in the world for him.
  So I thought I would come to the floor tonight, not to list the 
accolades--which I could in the thousands--not to say all those 
platitudes we always love to hear said about ourselves or about 
somebody important, but to make a confession. I am in love. I am in 
love with Stefanie Mohler because for most of her adult life she gave 
her time and her effort to make me a better Member of the U.S. Senate. 
She supported my wife when she needed it, and I couldn't help. She 
supported our office when they needed it, and they couldn't help. She 
did all of the little things that you never ask someone to do because 
you think it is too little, but it is so important to make a difference 
in every day that goes by.
  When she leaves in about 3 months, I am going to be sad. I will shed 
a tear or two. I will probably shed one for her before the night is 
over. But when she leaves, I want her to know and I want the whole 
Senate document to record that once in a while--every once in a while--
somebody special comes along and makes a difference in your life, your 
effort, and your ability. Stefanie Mohler has been that for me. I will 
never forget her for all that she has done for me, and I will always be 
there for her if she ever needs me.
  May God bless Stefanie Mohler, and may God bless the United States of 
America.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oregon.