[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 16 (Wednesday, January 25, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E53]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        RECOGNIZING CELIA GOULD

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. MICHAEL K. SIMPSON

                                of idaho

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 25, 2023

  Mr. SIMPSON. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to recognize the retiring 
director of the Idaho State Department of Agriculture and my close 
personal friend, Celia Gould. An Idaho native, third-generation cattle 
rancher, and dedicated public servant, Celia exemplifies Idaho's spirit 
and respect for agriculture.
  Celia was born and raised in an Idaho ranching family, and used the 
generations of knowledge she gained growing up to run her own cattle 
operations as an adult. Always interested in public service, Celia 
served 16 years in the Idaho House of Representatives before becoming 
the first woman to lead the Idaho State Department of Agriculture, a 
position she held for another 16 years. She saw the Department through 
the 2008 recession, during which she kept Idaho agriculture as the 
state's strongest industry, and is leaving her office with Idaho's 
agricultural exports worth over a billion dollars more per year than 
when she entered. As if her ranching and public service didn't keep her 
busy enough, Celia raised a wonderful family with her husband and 
former Idaho House Speaker Bruce Newcomb. I know she will do a great 
job implanting her long-held love for agriculture in her grandchildren.
  I first got to know Celia personally while we were both serving in 
the Idaho House of Representatives, and she quickly became one of my 
and my wife Kathy's best friends. In my last term as Speaker of the 
House, Celia served as the chair of the House Judiciary, Rules, and 
Administration Committee. She was an effective legislator who I was 
always glad to have in my conference. Of course, in politics it is hard 
to always keep everyone happy. Bruce and I learned one cardinal rule of 
working with Celia Gould: never mess with her when she is wearing a red 
dress.
  I join Celia's family and many friends and colleagues in 
congratulating her on an extraordinary career in public service and 
wishing her luck in her next chapter.

                          ____________________