[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 19]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 28314]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                   TRIBUTE TO THE LATE WALTER PAYTON

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. EARL F. HILLIARD

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 3, 1999

  Mr. HILLIARD. Mr. Speaker, today I rise with great sadness to 
recognize the loss of one of this country's greatest athletes--Mr. 
Walter Payton. As a former football player, I knew from the moment that 
he touched the field that he would dominate the game and become one of 
the great heroes of the league. There was a ``sweetness,'' as his 
nickname suggests, about him that let you know that he was in total 
control, and would have you wrestling to overpower him until the bitter 
end. His life is a testament to the American Dream, and embodies the 
struggles of a soldier at war against himself and his fellow man. Upon 
entering the league he was told he wouldn't be successful because of 
his small build, but through a rigorous workout and perseverance he 
became the best running back ever in the NFL. No other football player 
since him has brought such style and grace to a game defined by muscles 
and egos. In a society that is constantly coronating heroes and idols 
for our youth, I lift up Walter Payton as the epitome of valor, the 
symbol of truth, and the embodiment of what it means to be an American.
  Martin Luther King once challenged us to do our jobs so well that all 
the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great man 
who did his job well. This week, as we continue to reflect upon his 
career and look to the future, I ask that those of us on earth pause in 
tribute to a man who not only played football well, but served his 
people, his family and his country well. May we keep his family in our 
prayers and his legacy in our hearts.

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