[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 161 (Thursday, September 17, 2020)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E854]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO JOSEPH T. McELVEEN, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JAMES E. CLYBURN

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 17, 2020

  Mr. CLYBURN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a dear 
friend and the retiring Mayor of my hometown of Sumter, South Carolina. 
Joseph T. McElveen, Jr. is a dedicated public servant and an ardent 
advocate for Sumter. His leadership will be missed, but I know he will 
continue to be an active part of his beloved community.
  Joe McElveen and I share the hometown of Sumter and are blessed to 
have had entrepreneurial parents to teach us. His father, John, owned a 
bicycle shop and ice cream parlor on Liberty Street across from my 
mother's beauty shop. The two of them created a partnership that 
resulted in my brothers and me spending our summers selling his ice 
cream from our mother's push carts in our neighborhood. I am grateful 
that the relationship between our families developed into a lifelong 
friendship between us.
  Joe attended public schools in Sumter and graduated from The Citadel 
in 1968. He was a Gold Star student and a Distinguished Air Force 
Student and Graduate. Following college graduation, Joe went on to 
attend the University of South Carolina Law School, where he served on 
the Editorial Board of the South Carolina Law Review and published two 
articles. He graduated and was admitted to the Bar in 1971.
  After law school, Joe served in the U.S. Air Force as an 
administrative officer for the 728th Tactical Fighter Support Squadron. 
When his active duty service ended, he continued in reserve duty as a 
Staff Judge Advocate until 1977. During that time, Joe joined the Bryan 
Law Firm and became a partner in 1975. His legal career focused on 
family law and workers' compensation.
  Joe served on the House of Delegates and Board of Governors for the 
South Carolina Bar Association, and as a board member of the Workplace 
Litigation Group. He also received the Gold Compleat Lawyer Award by 
the South Carolina School of Law in 1996.
  In addition to his success as a lawyer, Joe is also dedicated to 
serving his community. He has served on the Sumter County Drug Abuse 
Council and as a member of the City of Sumter Zoning Board of 
Adjustments and the City/County Planning Commission. He has also served 
as president of the Sumter Jaycees, the Sumter Optimist Club and the 
Greater Sumter Chamber of Commerce. He also served on the board of the 
Sumter Family YMCA and was recognized for his service by the March of 
Dimes and the Heart Association.
  Joe has also held elective office. He was elected to Sumter City 
Council for two years, serving from 1984 to 1986. In 1986, he began 
representing Sumter County in the South Carolina House, where he served 
on the Judiciary and Rules Committee. He also served two terms as 
Majority Leader and left the State Legislature in 1996. In 2000, Joe 
ran for and was elected Mayor of our hometown.
  With his retirement this year as Mayor of Sumter, Joe leaves as the 
longest serving Mayor in the city's history. He also leaves a legacy of 
making the City of Sumter a better place. I was pleased to work with 
the Mayor to secure federal funding to renovate an old warehouse into a 
much-needed Intermodal Transportation Center. Later the Regional 
Transportation Authority honored me by naming the Center in my honor 
and I was present for its dedication in 2008. We also worked closely 
together to bring resources and services to economically distressed 
communities through three HOPE (Harvest Opportunity and Promoting 
Empowerment) Centers in the federally designated Sumter Columbia 
Empowerment Zone.
  As Mayor, Joe also oversaw a revitalization of Sumter's historic 
downtown. The Sumter Opera House was restored as a center for 
entertainment, a new Public Safety Complex was opened, and public parks 
including Memorial Park, Palmetto Park and Swan Lake Iris Gardens have 
been upgraded. During his tenure, he encouraged Leadership in Energy 
and Environmental Design (LEED) certification in new construction and 
renovations to public buildings to promote sustainability.
  He also expanded sports and recreational opportunities by opening the 
City of Sumter Aquatics Center and the Palmetto Tennis Center. Joe also 
led the initiative to decrease vacant properties by more than 22-
percent and developed the PRIDE program to help 564 owners clean up 
blighted properties. His efforts to improve Sumter, were recognized 
when the City was recognized as a Top 20 finalist in the 2019 All 
American City Competition hosted by the National League of Cities.
  Joe is a longtime member of The United States Conference of Mayors 
(USCM) and was elected to the 28-member USCM Advisory Board. He also 
serves as Chair of the Veteran Affairs Task Force and Vice Chair of the 
Membership Committee.
  He is married to the former Kathy Watson. They have two children, 
Thomas (Bronwyn) and Kate Price (Nick), and two grandchildren Adelaide 
and Joe McElveen. The family attends First Presbyterian Church, where 
Joe has served as a deacon and an elder.
  Madam Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues to join me wishing Mayor 
Joe McElveen a happy and healthy retirement from public life. He has 
demonstrated through this lifetime of service that he is motivated by 
his love of his community and its people. He has given his time and his 
talents to ensure Sumter continues to grow and thrive. It is a better 
place because of his service, and that is a tremendous legacy of which 
he should be extremely proud.

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