[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 153 (Thursday, September 13, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1259-E1260]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       RECOGNIZING STEVE McCLURE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. GREG WALDEN

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 13, 2018

  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize my good friend 
Steve McClure for his many years of service to Union County. Steve 
dedicated 28 years of his life to faithfully serving Union County, and 
he spent two years serving our great nation in the Vietnam War. I'd 
like to pay tribute to Steve's dedication to Union County and his 
leadership for eastern Oregon.
  Steve was born in Elgin, Oregon, and graduated from Elgin High School 
in 1964. In 1968, Steve was drafted into the Army and served his 
country in Vietnam, where he received a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart. 
Following his time in Vietnam, Steve was in the service as both an 
active reserve and an inactive reserve until 1974. Throughout his life, 
Steve has always shown a willingness to sacrifice for the betterment of 
other people.
  Steve moved to Florida, where he started his family. His daughter 
Jennifer was born in 1973, and has now decided to follow in her 
father's footsteps of public service by serving as the Mayor of Weston, 
Oregon. His son Michael was born in 1976 and is now a computer 
programmer. The family lived in Florida until 1978 when they moved back 
to Oregon, and Steve worked on the family farm.
  In 1990, Steve was appointed to the Union County Board of 
Commissioners, and was first elected to the role in November of that 
same year. He has gone on to serve six four-year terms for a total of 
28 years. During that time, Steve's commitment and loyalty to Union 
County and his friends across eastern Oregon has earned him the deep 
respect of his colleagues. Many people, including myself, have

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relied upon Steve's thorough knowledge of forestry and natural resource 
issues. In fact, Senator Bill Hansell remembers deferring to Steve on 
forestry issues when Hansell was a Umatilla County Commissioner, saying 
``if Steve was for it, that's all we needed to know.''
  Steve has a knack for public policy and is famous for his ability to 
get things to move forward. Both skills have been assets towards 
helping him effectively serve Union County and the region for many 
years. Understanding the challenges that we face in rural Oregon and 
how hard it can be for us to compete with metropolitan parts of our 
state, Steve took action. He rallied his colleagues, and maybe even 
twisted a few arms, to form the Eastern Oregon Counties Association to 
pool the resources of rural counties on common issues like improving 
the management of our public lands.
  Steve has shown tenacity, strength, and true leadership. Steve has 
always said that ``democracy means you always get your say, it doesn't 
mean you always get your way.'' Steve has always lived by those words, 
and has been willing to listen to anyone. Steve has always displayed 
dignity, integrity, and responsiveness. Union County and Eastern Oregon 
were lucky to have him as a public servant.
  Steve now has eight grandchildren, and three great-grandkids. As he 
retires from public service, he plans to continue serving in the 
capacity of a father, grandfather, and great grandfather. I am 
confident that Steve will impart his wisdom and knowledge onto future 
generations of his family so they may carry it forward.
  I ask my colleagues to join me today in recognizing and thanking 
Steve for his many years of I leadership in Union County. I wish him 
and his family all the best in his retirement.