[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 156 (Thursday, September 28, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1285-E1286]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       TRIBUTE TO SENATOR LUKE KENLEY FOR HIS SERVICE TO INDIANA

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SUSAN W. BROOKS

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 28, 2017

  Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
retirement of Senator Luke Kenley from the Indiana State Senate after 
25 years. For decades Senator Kenley has served not only his 
constituents in Indiana's 20th Senate district, but has served our 
state and our nation. The people of Indiana's Fifth Congressional 
District are forever grateful for Senator Kenley's commitment to making 
our Hoosier home and our country a better, safer, place to live.
  The oldest of eight children, Howard ``Luke'' Kenley is a life-long 
Hoosier and was raised in Hamilton County. He and his siblings split 
time between Noblesville during the school year and working summers at 
his grandparents' west Texas cattle ranch in Ft. Stockton. Senator 
Kenley graduated from Noblesville High School as their senior class 
president in 1963, where he met his high school sweetheart and future 
wife, Sally. Senator Kenley then attended Miami University in Oxford, 
Ohio, my alma mater. He graduated in the class of 1967 earning his 
bachelor's degree in economics. Following graduation from Miami, he 
went on to Harvard to pursue his law degree. Senator Kenley left law 
school in 1969 during the fourth year of the Vietnam war to enroll in 
officer candidate school (OCS) where he graduated first in his class 
with the rank of Lieutenant. After completing OCS, Senator Kenley 
returned to Harvard to finish his law degree in 1972. Senator Kenley 
then returned to Noblesville to start his career and begin a family 
with his wife, Sally.
  Senator Kenley practiced business law in Indianapolis for two years, 
after which he left to run the family business, founded in 1940 by his 
grandfather R.A. Kenley. Under his leadership Kenley Supermarkets, in 
Noblesville, grew tremendously from 20 employees and $2 million in 
yearly sales to two stores and 175 employees with $16 million in yearly 
sales. Senator Kenley managed operations from 1974 to 1998, at which 
time Marsh Supermarkets purchased the business. In addition to his time 
at the helm of Kenley Supermarkets, Senator Kenley served as the 
Noblesville City Court judge at the urging of Hamilton County 
Republican leaders. In 1990, after 15 years and 40,000 cases, Senator 
Kenley retired from the bench. It was not long before he was again 
asked to serve. In 1992, Senator Kenley was tapped to fill the vacancy 
in state Senate campaign in his home district. Senator Kenley won the 
seat and has served with distinction ever since his first term.
  He earned respect from his peers during his very first term and he 
was awarded ``Freshman Legislator of the Year''. During his career in 
the Senate, Senator Kenley worked tirelessly on the Tax and Fiscal 
Policy committee to make Indiana a fiscally responsible and affordable 
state. He is responsible for pushing through the largest tax cut in 
Indiana's history, while simultaneously leading the charge on welfare 
reform. His budgetary talents led him to the chairmanship of the Senate 
Appropriations Committee, and in turn led him to become one of the key 
architects of the Indiana state budget. This year Indiana will once 
again have a balanced budget, including provisions for a long term road 
maintenance plan and no tax increases. During his eight-year tenure as 
chairman, Indiana has seen its reserves grow to two billion dollars, 
while also eliminating excess taxes. Senator Kenley, in addition to his 
work on the budget, sat on the Education and Career Development 
Committee. He consistently pushed for continued K-12 funding as well as 
school choice. During his tenure, Senator Kenley helped to craft the 
Community Transition Program, which seeks to create a better transition 
back to society for offenders following their release from prison. 
Continuing with his care for all life, Senator Kenley's determination 
in protecting the unborn has led Indiana to be one of the most pro-life 
states in the nation. Senator Kenley was recognized for his numerous 
contributions in both 2013 with a Sagamore of the Wabash as well as in 
2014 through the Distinguished Public Official Award from Ivy Tech 
Community College, well-deserved recognitions indeed.
  During his vibrant career, Luke also served as the Board President 
for the Noblesville Boys and Girls Club while also maintaining active 
memberships in the Noblesville Chamber of Commerce, the United Way of 
Central Indiana, Elks Lodge No. 576, the American Legion, the Hamilton 
County 50 club, and the First United Methodist Church of Noblesville. 
In 2004, he acted as the coordinator for Hamilton County Veteran's 
Organization Vietnam Wall Recreation Activities. Senator Kenley and his 
wife Sally's crowning achievement have been helping establish the 
Noblesville Education Foundation, which provides access to financial 
and material resources for Noblesville teachers. In addition to the 
Foundation, they created the ``Strings'' music program for Noblesville 
schools. He also holds annual leadership conferences at the State House 
for high school senior class presidents from his district about the 
importance of public service. Senator Kenley says ``It's important for 
our young people to think about public service as part of what they're 
going to contribute . . . It's part of the commitment to the success of 
our society.'' He says for democracy to work, ``Everybody's got to 
pitch in''.
  Senator Kenley's lifetime of service to his community, through his 
military service, as Noblesville City Court judge, as state Senator, 
and as the architect of our state budget and our state's fiscal 
stability, he has been invaluable not only to his district but to our 
whole state and nation. Thanks to his dedication to fiscal 
responsibility, to K-12 education, and numerous other projects 
throughout his career, Indiana is a great place to live and do 
business. On behalf of all Hoosiers, I wish to extend a heartfelt thank 
you to Senator Kenley for his lifetime of service. I wish the very best 
to Senator Kenley, his wife Sally, their three children John, Bill, and 
Etsy as well as the rest of the Kenley family in his well-deserved 
retirement at home and on the ranch.

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