[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 125 (Wednesday, July 27, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3741-S3742]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      REMEMBERING THOMAS TRESSELT

 Mr. MURPHY. Mr. President, I rise today to honor the life and 
memory of a dear friend, Thomas Tresselt, who passed away on July 12 in 
Hartford.
  Tom was an American classic. He grew up in Indiana where he was the 
star of his high school's basketball team before taking his talents to 
Yale University. In his first year, he scored 16 points on future NBA 
player, U.S. Senator, and Presidential candidate Bill Bradley's 
Princeton team. While he was not destined for the NBA, he never lost 
his love of basketball. In the early 80s--before computers were 
commonplace--he and a friend started their law firm's March Madness 
pool, providing comprehensive round-by-round standings, calculated 
manually using brackets drawn by hand.
  Tom went on to the University of Michigan Law School where he married 
the love of his life, Sally. Sally and Tom would be married for 57 
years. Following law school, Tom was commissioned an officer in the 
U.S. Navy, where he served in Beachmaster Unit 2 from 1969 to 1971. 
After the Navy, Tom and Sally moved to San Francisco where Tom worked 
as a litigator for Orrick, Herrington, Rowley, and Sutcliffe.
  ``Tired of always arguing for a living,'' Tom moved back to 
Connecticut, the place he and his family would call home for the next 
nearly 50 years. From 1974 to 1977, he was assistant dean of Yale Law 
School before joining Shipman and Goodman, where he practiced corporate 
law until 2008.
  A leader in every sense of the word, Tom was an extremely active 
member of his community. At Asylum Hill Congregation Church, he served 
as moderator, was cochair of the capital campaign, served on the board 
of Christian service, was a deacon, and performed in the Boar's Head 
Festival as a king, log carrier, Beefeater, and other roles for nearly 
20 years. He also served on the board of Loaves and Fishes, the 
American School for the Deaf, and Leadership Greater Hartford--3rd Age 
Initiative.
  I knew Tom as a great friend and coworker of my father who, like Tom, 
made Shipman and Goodwin his work home for five decades. To me, Tom was 
a legend. Thoughtful and kind, with this big, booming, smiling 
personality that drew people to him. That person in your life that 
everyone just wants to be around. He was a man of action who led by 
example and was committed to his country, his family, and his 
community.
  Tom battled Alzheimer's at the end of his life, but never lost his 
sense of humor, compassion, and love for his family and friends.
  I only wish I could have known him better. But I knew him well enough 
to

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know how great he was. Tom Tresselt will be missed by all.

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