[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 194 (Thursday, December 5, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6886-S6887]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     REMEMBERING DR. WOODIE FLOWERS

 Ms. HASSAN. Mr. President, today I would like to recognize the 
life of an extraordinary individual, Dr. Woodie Flowers.
  As an engineer, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of 
Technology--MIT--and an integral part of FIRST--For Inspiration and 
Recognition of Science and Technology--Woodie helped educate and 
inspire people in New Hampshire, across the country, and around the 
world.
  I first had the privilege of meeting Woodie in the 1980s when I was 
doing legal work for MIT. Almost immediately, I recognized his 
curiosity and eagerness to learn, his patience and understanding, and 
his desire to collaborate and work effectively. Woodie extended that 
ethos and enthusiasm for education to every aspect of his life, 
including through his groundbreaking leadership at MIT and FIRST.
  Throughout his career, Woodie brought a unique vision to his work

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and frequently stressed that technology is changing at a pace that the 
human brain simply cannot keep up with. This understanding and concern 
led him to emphasize the importance of teaching critical thinking and 
an allegiance to objective truth, which he posited would push back 
against the tribalism and binary thinking afflicting our society.
  As part of his efforts to bridge division and expand human 
understanding, Woodie served as a mentor to countless students. While 
following Woodie in a speaking program was certainly a daunting task, I 
always looked forward to hearing his perspective at FIRST events. The 
major theme that Woodie sought to impart to students is that life is 
not a zero sum game. He would encourage them to work and compete with 
``gracious professionalism,'' where you work hard and challenge one 
another to be your very best, but you always engage with respect and 
kindness. FIRST encourages its participants to consider the annual 
contest as ``coopertition,'' and Woodie used the opportunity to 
interact with the students and coaches as a way to reinforce this 
critical concept, that success comes through bringing out the best in 
each other and in humanity.
  Woodie understood what a good leader should be, and his vision and 
example are characteristics that all Americans should aspire to. And in 
many ways, his confidence in our ability as human beings to solve 
problems and transcend our most basic tribal instincts, informed by 
science and grace, was uniquely American.
  Dr. Woodie Flowers was one of the most brilliant, kind, and creative 
people I have ever met, and it was an honor to know him. I extend my 
condolences to Woodie's talented and magnificent wife and partner, 
Margaret, and their entire family. And I join them and the FIRST 
community in mourning an extraordinarily intelligent inventor, 
humanist, and American.
  We will miss Woodie more than I can say, but I am certain that his 
legacy will live on through the countless lives he has touched. The 
world is a smarter, better, and more hopeful place because Woodie 
Flowers lived his life with love and purpose.

                          ____________________