[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 99 (Wednesday, June 7, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2000-S2001]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO KEN REICHARD

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I rise to congratulate Kenneth Paul 
Reichard on his retirement and to thank him for his 17 years of 
outstanding service as my Montgomery County district director and his 
career of selfless service to the residents of the county and all 
Marylanders. This Monday, the city of Rockville will officially 
recognize Ken--a lifelong resident--for his service. On April 14, 
Representative Jamie Raskin interviewed Ken for one of his weekly 
``Local Hero'' podcasts. The accolades Ken is receiving are well-
deserved. As Montgomery County Council President Evan Glass stated, 
``Ken has been a terrific advocate for Montgomery County! We are all 
beneficiaries of his grace, good humor and leadership.'' Ken is a local 
hero to Maryland and a personal hero to me. For the better part of two 
decades, Ken has been a lifeline to Montgomery County, helping to make 
sure that no citizen is left behind.
  Ken was born at the original Montgomery General Hospital in Olney, 
MD, on August 17, 1943. His parents were Kenneth Henderson Reichard of 
Guilford Township, Franklin County, PA, and Gladys Lydia Martin 
Reichard of Reid, Washington County, MD. He is a descendent of a 
Revolutionary War soldier, George Barnard Reichard, from Pennsylvania, 
who fought from 1777 to 1780. He grew up in a union household on 
Horners Lane in Rockville with an older brother, Lee. Ken graduated 
from Richard Montgomery High School, Rockville, in 1961. While he 
attended high school, he started working part-time at the Safeway 
grocery store on Bradley Boulevard in Bethesda. He quickly joined the 
United Food and Commercial Workers International Union--UFCW--and 
became the local's youngest business agent ever when he was just 21, 
winning his first election by 87 votes. He traveled to other stores 
around the State, and it wasn't long before Ken was handling labor 
grievances and negotiating contracts. By the time he finished his 
career with UFCW, he was executive assistant to

[[Page S2001]]

the president of the national union, director of government affairs, 
and senior vice president. Then-Governor Parris Glendening tapped Ken 
to serve as assistant secretary and commissioner of labor and industry 
at the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation. After 
that, he cochaired Senator John Kerry's 2004 Presidential campaign in 
Maryland with Heather Mizeur, who went on to serve as a member of the 
Maryland House of Delegates from 2007 to 2015, representing the 20th 
District in Montgomery County.
  Given Ken's extensive knowledge of the issues, politics, and people 
of Montgomery County and beyond, my campaign contacted him and 
convinced him to serve as my metropolitan Washington-area 
representative when I first ran for the Senate in 2006. Ken has been 
with me ever since, and I am so grateful. He has met with countless 
constituents, businessowners, and elected officials; joined or 
represented me at field events; served as my liaison to organized 
labor; and handled special assignments. He has done it all with grace 
and insight and a quiet competence.
  Ken married Sandra Lee Wiley on February 23, 1964, in Rockville, MD. 
Ken, now widowed, has three children: Cassie, Eric, and Paula; seven 
grandchildren: Lindsay, Caitlyn, Sampson, Tyler, Amanda, Sydney, and 
Drew; and two great-granddaughters: Maya and Stella. Ken was a member 
of Crusader Lutheran Church for a number of years and held several 
positions on the church counsel. Over the years, Ken has enjoyed 
volunteering for political campaigns and serving on several boards 
within Montgomery County, traveling in his motorhome, camping, building 
and fixing anything for the home, tending to an orchard of fruit trees, 
and appreciating classic cars.
  There are few Marylanders--and even fewer Montgomery County 
residents--who have not benefited in one way or another from Ken's 
lifelong service to others. Ken has lived up to Douglas Adams's--author 
of ``The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy''--maxim, ``To give real 
service you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with 
money, and that is sincerity and integrity.'' I want to thank Ken's 
family for ``sharing'' him with the people of Montgomery County and all 
Marylanders. Above all, I want to thank Ken himself for his wise 
counsel and friendship over the years. While he no longer works for me 
in an official capacity, I will continue to rely on him unofficially in 
the weeks and months ahead while hoping that he spends more time with 
his family and friends and recreational pursuits.

                          ____________________