[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 204 (Friday, December 5, 2025)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1158]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 RECOGNIZING MR. STANLEY R. LAWSON, SR.

                                  _____
                                 

                            HON. SCOTT PERRY

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, December 5, 2025

  Mr. PERRY. Mr. Speaker, I am humbled and honored to recognize the 
life and legacy of Stanley R. Lawson, Sr., a veteran and trailblazer in 
Pennsylvania.
  Born and raised in Harrisburg, Stan was a loving father, son, 
community leader, and public servant whose life's work was defined by 
service to others. He was a proud combat veteran of the United States 
Navy, serving in Vietnam from 1960 to 1964. After returning home, he 
began his 50-year career in politics and public service.
  Stan made history in 1969 by becoming the first African American to 
be elected to the Harrisburg City Council, eventually serving as the 
Vice President in the early 1970's. His journey in public service 
continued as the first African American President of AFSCME Council No. 
13, the first African American President of the Susquehanna Township 
Board of Commissioners, and the first African American Chairman of the 
Dauphin County Republican Committee. In 1986, Stan stood alongside 
Governor Dick Thornburgh for the signing of House Bill 1855, which 
conveyed funding and property designated for Susquehanna Township, 
while he was the President of the Susquehanna Township Board of 
Commissioners. Those funds were used to create the Susquehanna Township 
parks, an example of how Stan's leadership directly improved Citizens' 
quality of life.
  In addition to his public service, Stan was deeply committed to the 
local community, civil rights, and his faith in God. Throughout the 
1990's, he established and managed Lawson's Grocery, Stan Lawson's 
Palace, and multiple residential and commercial real estate 
enterprises. In 2006, he became the President of the Greater Harrisburg 
Area NAACP, where he served for over 10 years. In 2009, he was ordained 
as a Deacon at the First Spirit Filled Missionary Baptist Church.
  Over the course of his life, Stan earned several meaningful honors 
that meant a great deal to him, including the Man of the Year Award 
from the Dauphin County Teenage Republicans in 1971, a Resolution of 
Recognition from the Black Republican Council of Pennsylvania in 1982, 
and a Presidential Award from the IMC of Greater Harrisburg in 2012.
  Mr. Speaker, I am honored and privileged to recognize Mr. Stanley R. 
Lawson, Sr. for his tireless, dedicated, and faithful service to God, 
family, friends, the Harrisburg community, our Commonwealth, and the 
United States of America. His lifetime of public service, his 
pioneering contributions to civil rights, and his enduring commitment 
to community leadership will endure into eternity. Stan's life example 
of ``service above self'' set the standard by which all should be 
judged.

                          ____________________