[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 25, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H3934-H3936]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1900
                        TRIBUTE TO JOYCE HAMLETT

  (Mr. McCARTHY asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. McCARTHY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a remarkable woman 
and public servant who works in this Chamber every single day: Ms. 
Joyce Hamlett.
  (Applause, the Members rising.)
  Mr. McCARTHY. Joyce, with that support, I should have had you run my 
Speaker's race.
  This is Joyce's last week on the House floor. After 35 years of 
working in Congress, she is about to begin a well-earned retirement 
where she will spend time with her loved ones.

[[Page H3935]]

  This is truly the end of an era. Joyce is the first African-American 
woman to be appointed as the Keeper of the Mace.
  Now, we all know Joyce, and she knows each and every one of us. She 
has gotten to know some of you even better than others.
  For those at home, Joyce is the keeper of the rules. Just so you know 
that she is fair to all, it was just last month that I thought, being 
Speaker, I could have my own rules, and I brought somebody onto the 
floor. I asked the people outside, ``Hey, can I bring somebody onto the 
floor?'' I thought we were out of session. They said: ``You are the 
Speaker. Go ahead.''
  I walked in those doors, but somebody stopped me. It was Joyce.
  If it was not just me sneaking someone onto the floor but you without 
a tie or proper attire, you would have received a polite reminder from 
Joyce about the rules of decorum.
  I would watch at times at the greatest height where we were not 
getting along with one another, when the tensions were high and I was 
afraid to talk to some of my own Members, but when Joyce walked up with 
that unbelievable smile and she would tell them they were doing 
something wrong, it was just like she was the teacher and they were in 
the first grade. ``Yes, Ms. Joyce,'' and they sat right back down.
  Joyce has devoted her entire career to this institution, the people's 
House. In the early 1980s, she started working as a cook in the Capitol 
cafeteria alongside her mother, Betty. Then she served as an elevator 
operator in the Capitol before taking a position with Chamber security.
  In total, as I said earlier, Joyce has given more than 35 years of 
her life to the House of Representatives.
  That is why she cares so deeply about this Chamber and works to 
ensure that everyone who walks through these doors treats this 
institution with the respect it deserves.
  In fact, Joyce has had one of the most important responsibilities in 
the House. When the people think of Congress, they think of the Capitol 
Building, of the dome, the symbol of American democracy. When people 
think of the House, we have our own symbol: the mace of the House of 
Representatives.
  The day begins when the mace is raised, and the day ends when the 
mace is lifted. It has become the symbol of responsibility and duty for 
this institution in which we are honored to serve. Since 2007, Joyce 
has been charged with protecting and keeping the mace.
  I don't know if you have looked at her brooch. When I became Speaker, 
Ann Hand came to see me. She makes a lot of different jewelry. She 
sells it, and I look to buy. She brought me this one piece of jewelry. 
She said the only person that has it is the Speaker before, Speaker 
Pelosi. I had watched Speaker Pelosi wear that brooch of that mace. She 
provided it to me for a family member.
  The thing I enjoy the most about this job is when I get to put the 
floor into session. I got to know Joyce. We spend time behind there. 
She is holding the mace. I thought, wouldn't that be a great gift for 
retirement? In the back of my mind, she had told me that she was 
leaving, so I said: We are going to have a party for you.
  I thought we could present this to her then, but then I thought, no, 
I need to present it to her now--the look on her face. The brooch on 
her lapel, she wears that every day, proudly. She wears it because she 
has earned it as the Keeper of the Mace.
  I have told her time and again it is going to be sad to see her go, 
and I know Joyce is looking very much forward to spending more time 
with her family in North Carolina, with her two sons, David, Jr., and 
Donald, and all of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
  Joyce, on behalf of the House, a really grateful thank-you. Thank you 
for your service. Thank you for your friendship. Personally, thank you 
for your commitment to the people's House.
  We are a better institution because of Joyce. We are better Members 
in some of our darkest times because of a warning from Joyce.
  You will always be welcome back into this House.
  May you enjoy all the happiness in this world that this well-earned 
retirement brings. I thank you for the work, the commitment, and the 
friendship.
  Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Jeffries).
  Mr. JEFFRIES. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend a faithful 
public servant of this great institution on the occasion of her 
retirement.
  For decades, our very own Joyce Hamlett has worked in this Chamber, 
dutifully upholding and protecting our traditions.
  On behalf of House Democrats, it is a distinct privilege to publicly 
honor her incredible career of service to the United States House of 
Representatives, 35 years of poise, professionalism, and particularity.
  In the early 1990s, after spending some time in the prior decade as a 
cafeteria worker, elevator operator, and doorkeeper, Joyce secured a 
position in Chamber security with the Sergeant at Arms, where she began 
to firmly enforce the rules of decorum on the House floor, emphasis on 
the word ``firmly.''
  Upon arriving in Congress as a new Member, I quickly came to a 
conclusion: Don't mess with Joyce. As House Democratic leader, I came 
to the same conclusion: Don't mess with Joyce.

  In connection with her exemplary service with Chamber security, Joyce 
was elevated in 2007 to the position of Keeper of the Mace, as has been 
mentioned, the first Black woman to hold that role in the 234-year 
history of this great institution.
  Joyce's career in the House has spanned seven different Presidents, 
including Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama, as well as eight different 
Speakers, beginning with Jim Wright, including Speaker Emerita Nancy 
Pelosi, and concluding with Speaker Kevin McCarthy.
  Throughout the years, Joyce has served in the Chamber with legendary 
Members, from John Lewis, the iconic civil rights hero and conscience 
of the Congress, to Don Young, the longest serving Republican Member of 
the House and an authentic frontier spirit who always told us what was 
on his mind.
  The American public may not have the opportunity to intimately get to 
know officers of the Capitol, like Joyce, who serve here each and every 
day, but thankfully we do. We know our work would be impossible without 
the diligence, dedication, and devotion of public servants like Joyce.
  Her deep-rooted faith in God and her sense of duty were instilled 
during her childhood while growing up in rural North Carolina, having 
been raised in a God-fearing church community by her loving 
grandfather. Joyce learned at an early age the importance of service 
and faithfulness.
  That faith has served the Members of this institution well throughout 
the years, including on September 11, when she helped Members evacuate 
in the midst of a terrorist attack heading our way, or on January 6, 
when a violent mob attacked the Capitol and tried to breach the 
Chamber. Joyce faithfully executed her role with the utmost care, 
helping to secure the House Chamber and ensuring the safety and 
protection of the Members and the congressional mace. When we 
reconvened on the House floor that night, it was Joyce, with the mace, 
who brought us back into session.
  As I close, we are grateful today that throughout the years, as the 
Scripture says, Joyce has been faithful over a few things: faithful to 
the Chamber, faithful to the Congress, faithful to the country, and 
faithful to the Constitution. She has been faithful over a few things.
  As Joyce prepares to go back home to North Carolina, I think we can 
confidently express the sentiment found in Matthew 25:23: Well done, 
thy good and faithful servant. Well done.
  Congratulations on your retirement.
  (Applause, the Members rising.)
  Mr. McCARTHY. Madam Speaker, Joyce is still going to be here with us 
for the rest of the week.
  Tomorrow, at 11 o'clock, in the Rayburn Room, Leader Jeffries and I 
are going to host a reception for her retirement, and you can all come 
by.
  Let's not make the week go longer just for Joyce. Let's end on a 
positive note for Joyce.
  (Applause, the Members rising.)

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