[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 129 (Wednesday, July 26, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E723]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             COMMEMORATING THE RETIREMENT OF JOHN ELSESSER

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JOE COURTNEY

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 26, 2023

  Mr. COURTNEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to enthusiastically honor and 
congratulate a true pillar of public service in municipal governance, 
John Elsesser of Coventry, Connecticut. John is retiring this year from 
his role as Town Manager for the Town of Coventry--a position he has 
held since 1988. His almost 4 decades of selfless advocacy for his 
community and all municipalities has been felt from the halls of local 
government all the way to the chambers of Connecticut's General 
Assembly in Hartford and the U.S. Capitol. John's expertise and ability 
will be sorely missed.
  John began his journey in public service when he started as an 
administrative assistant in Wethersfield soon after his graduation from 
the University of Hartford with a master's in public administration in 
1982. John's competency and skill navigating the complexities of town 
government were quickly recognized. Not long after his initial 
employment with the Town of Wethersfield, he transitioned over to the 
nearby government of Avon, Connecticut as its Assistant Town Manager.
  In May of 1988, John rose to the pinnacle of his profession when he 
began his tenure fully in charge as Coventry's Town Manager. Once 
there, he quickly established himself as an indispensable advocate for 
the municipality, while simultaneously he brought an enlightened form 
of town administration for all the departments under his control. John 
successfully operationalized his vision for Coventry and has been 
responsible for countless, necessary upgrades to the town's 
functioning. He secured funding to update the town's administrative 
software and oversaw a bond rating upgrade by Moody's in a time of 
great fiscal instability for Connecticut. John has been wildly 
successful in securing grant money for Coventry, garnering over $57 
million in state and federal funding the past year and a half alone for 
the town--money which has been used to spearhead infrastructure 
upgrades and create more pedestrian-friendly roads.
  Collaboration has been a cornerstone of John's leadership style, 
holding a great respect for Coventry's Town Council and working within 
the legislative framework they provided. He formed partnerships with 
organizations like the University of Connecticut and Connecticut 
Department of Agriculture to improve the quality of life for residents 
in Coventry. Most importantly, John was paramount in the creation of a 
positive culture of staff and volunteers. As a municipal leader of a 
small, eastern Connecticut town, John knew the importance volunteers 
and administrators play in rural civic ecosystems. It stands as a 
testament to John's community-centric mindset that he laments being 
unable to construct a community center during his time.
  John's expertise and excellence has been recognized both statewide 
and nationally. He has served as President of the CT Town & City 
Management Association, the Council of Small Towns, and the Tolland 
County Chamber of Commerce. These local initiatives band town leaders 
together to coordinate resources, fund improvements and boost the 
economy for participating towns. John's leading role in all these 
groups indicates how widely he has been recognized for his 
accomplishments. Governor Ned Lamont appointed John to the Advisory 
Commission on Intergovernmental Relations in 2019, an advisory 
organization dedicated to studying issues and recommend solutions in 
and for state and local government. In 2021, he was recognized for his 
remarkable 40 years of municipal service--a reflection of his 
successful work with local government. As a former state legislator 
from a ``next door'' district in the Town of Vernon in the late 1980's 
and early 1990's, I saw firsthand his activist work to remind the 
General Assembly of the importance of small, rural communities to our 
state's quality of life. As the Congressman representing Coventry for 
the last 17 years, it has been a pleasure to work with John on securing 
funding for from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development 
program, the American Rescue Plan, the new infrastructure law, and the 
green energy initiatives in the Inflation Reduction Act. John's 
understanding of the nuances of formula grant funding and competitive 
grants was extraordinary. I was constantly struck by the realization of 
how blessed his town was to have such a talented, caring person at the 
helm.
  Mr. Speaker, John Elsesser has been an exceptional public servant 
throughout his life. He is deserving of a happy and relaxing retirement 
in this next stage of his life, along with his wife, Holly. Eastern 
Connecticut's roots are in local leadership. As the longest-known-
serving Town Manager at the time of his retirement--throughout our 
entire state of 169 towns--John has inherently reflected those roots 
through his loyalty to public service and his neighbors. John leaves 
behind an immeasurable legacy of stalwart advocacy and stewardship, and 
his retirement will leave a large gap in northeast Connecticut's civic 
fauna. We can take solace, though, in the knowledge that John's 
tireless work will be felt in Coventry, the northeast region, and 
state, for decades to come.

                          ____________________