[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 199 (Wednesday, December 21, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S9773]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


     
     
     
                           TRIBUTE TO MARY ANN ULLRICH
     
       Mr. CARDIN. Madam President, I rise today to honor Mary Ann Ullrich, 
     manager of the Office of Congressional Publishing at the Government 
     Publishing Office, GPO. On December 31, 2022, Mary will retire from the 
     GPO after more than 37 years of public service. Mary's career--which is 
     truly an American dream as she will tell you herself--started after she 
     graduated from high school with excellent typing skills and a strong 
     work ethic. She started in 1980 in the personnel office of what was 
     then known as the Government Printing Office as a clerk typist. She is 
     now retiring from GPO as the second shift manager in congressional 
     publishing.
       Mary is a New York City native, who grew up in the Bronx before 
     relocating to Maryland. After she started working at GPO, she quickly 
     moved up through the ranks through printing procurement, customer 
     service, and quality assurance, where she reviewed printing for quality 
     defects and was commended for discovering a loophole in the QATAP 
     Program that contractors must adhere to as a procurement requirement, 
     potentially saving taxpayer dollars. Mary then worked for the 
     superintendent of documents designing marketing materials and the 
     postscript service section processing electronic prepress files and 
     posting government documents online. Mary received a prestigious Hammer 
     Award for her work on GPOAccess during the Clinton administration ``for 
     helping to create a government that works better and costs less.'' She 
     posted publications online such as the daily Congressional Record, the 
     Starr Report, and many assorted congressional and Federal Government 
     publications.
       Mary then went to typography and design where she typeset many 
     different products, including Ronald Reagan's lying in state card and 
     program when he was interred in the Capitol. She received a plaque from 
     Mrs. Reagan for her efforts. She also typeset and produced the White 
     House programs for Presidential events during the Clinton and Bush 
     administrations, Colin Powell's ``Joint Force Quarterly (JFQ) 
     Magazine,'' and other government publications such as the ``Senate 
     Catalogue of Fine Art'' and ``Glenn Brown's History of the Capitol''--
     both fine art books for the Senate Curator's office and the Architect 
     of the Capitol's office respectively.
       Mary was working with the White House public affairs staff on a White 
     House program the morning of September 11, 2001, when news of the 
     terrorist attack on our country was broadcast. She proudly worked 
     almost 32 hours straight to produce the 9/11 Memorial Ceremony Program 
     to ensure that all was ready for the 10 a.m. memorial service at 
     Washington National Cathedral. For her dedication to excellence, then-
     First Lady Laura Bush sent a personally signed thank you to Mary.
       On October 1, 2006, Mary moved up to congressional publishing, where 
     she worked directly with congressional staff to procure the 
     publications of Congress. She handled the procurement and press sheet 
     inspection of the Glenn Brown Book that she had typeset in T&D, 
     finishing the production cycle full-circle. Mary also worked with the 
     Senate Curators to produce the ``Senate Catalogue of Graphic Art'' and 
     the reprint of ``Constantino Brumidi, Artist of the Capitol'' fine art 
     book--all high-quality printed books--as well as large projects such as 
     the House's new Members orientation products. Mary then went to second 
     shift on October 21, 2012, working with the House and Senate Official 
     Reporters on the daily Congressional Record printing and online 
     services; the Senate and House Bill Clerks and Enrolling Clerks on 
     producing bills and legislation; and the House and Senate 
     Appropriations Committees' omnibus bills and other materials, to name 
     just a few of her responsibilities.
       I often say that our nonpartisan career civil service is one of our 
     Nation's most important and least appreciated assets. It consists of 
     hundreds of thousands of people like Mary Ullrich, mostly anonymous, 
     who serve their fellow Americans with pride and distinction. If you ask 
     Mary, she will tell you how proud she is to be a career civil servant 
     and how fortunate she has felt to work at the GPO. Mary has looked up 
     at the Capitol Dome every day from the front door of GPO, brimming with 
     pride for the part she has played in ``Keeping America Informed'' about 
     Congress and the legislative process. I want to congratulate Mary Ann 
     Ullrich of the GPO on her well-earned retirement after over 37 years of 
     loyal Federal service.
     
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