[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 154 (Tuesday, September 26, 2017)]
[House]
[Page H7493]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING LEWIS DONELSON

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Kustoff) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. KUSTOFF of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a very 
good friend of mine, Lewis Donelson of Memphis, Tennessee.
  This October, ``Lewie,'' as most call him, is turning 100 years old, 
and I cannot be more proud to celebrate with him.
  Lewie is a brilliant lawyer who has practiced law for almost 70 
years. He founded one of our Nation's largest law firms with Senator 
Howard Baker, now called Baker Donelson. But Lewie's impact extends far 
beyond his legal accomplishments.
  Lewie was one of the founders of the Shelby Republican Party, and he 
was instrumental in building the party throughout the entire State of 
Tennessee. In 1968, Lewie helped establish the very first Memphis City 
Council at the height of the civil rights movement and played a 
significant role in resolving the sanitation strike led by Dr. Martin 
Luther King, Jr. He led the charge for peaceful integration and legal 
equality in Memphis.
  Lewie served as Tennessee's commissioner of finance for then-Governor 
Lamar Alexander. He was chairman of the Board of The Med in Memphis and 
served on the board of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, also in 
Memphis. Amazingly, through all of this, Lewie taught his Sunday school 
class at Idlewild Presbyterian for more than 60 years.
  Lewie is a visionary and a leader. He is bold and not afraid to do 
the right thing. Roberta and I are so glad to call Lewie our friend, 
and we cannot wait to celebrate his 100 remarkable years.

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