[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17211]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page 17211]]

                  TRIBUTE TO LOUISE STEFANELLI SIMMONS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. NICK J. RAHALL II

                            of west virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, September 6, 2000

  Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in tribute to Louise Stefanelli 
Simmons who retired from the Corps of Engineers in Huntington, West 
Virginia on August 1, 2000 after dedicating 39 years, 11 months and 
four days to the Corps.
  I salute Louise Stefanelli Simmons for her lifelong dedication to her 
husband and son Alan, as well as her devotion to duty throughout her 
service with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Her professionalism as 
well as her commitment to family and community are an outstanding 
example of family values and good citizenship.
  Louise was born in Newark, New Jersey of Italian immigrant parents, 
one of four children. After graduating from Newark Prep with an 
associate degree in business, Louise worked as a civilian for the U.S. 
Army Corps in Newark during World War II, where she met her future 
husband Howard ``Red'' Simmons. Upon her marriage, she left family and 
friends in New Jersey to marry ``Simmy'' as she called him, moving with 
him to Huntington, West Virginia. Louise remembers the ``culture 
shock'' when she first visited downtown Huntington--the girl from the 
``big city''--there was no comparison.
  Early on in her marriage to ``Simmy'', she helped him run their 
restaurant, the Corral Drive-Inn near Marshall University, then got her 
real estate license so she could help him in his real estate 
development business.
  In addition to helping out with the restaurant business and her 
husband's real estate interests, Louise worked several years for an 
insurance company before coming to the Corps of Engineers in 1963, 
Beginning in the typing pool before becoming secretary to the Chief of 
Engineering, she later became the secretary to the Colonel in charge of 
the Huntington Corps, where she remained for nearly four decades.
  Louise will spend much of her retirement time as a long-time booster 
of Marshall University's sports activities, especially the football 
team, and attending the sporting events involving her two 
grandchildren, Mark 14 and Elizabeth 12.
  Louise loves to travel, back to New Jersey with family and friends. 
Early this summer she took a 2-week vacation to Italy, to revisit the 
history of her parentage, and to steep herself in the culture and 
traditions of her parents' homeland.
  Other retirement activities will include her dedication to walking 
(twice around Ritter Park at least 5 days a week), watching old movies, 
and perfecting her Italian cooking. Louise is an active member of 
Johnson Memorial United Methodist Church, the Women's Club of 
Huntington, and participates in the Professional Secretaries 
Association.
  I wish all the best for Louise, her husband, son Alan and her 
grandchildren as she embarks upon her Golden Years giving all her 
uninterrupted energy and love to her family, to her church, and to the 
community to which she has already contributed so abundantly throughout 
her remarkable life in her adopted State of West Virginia.

                          ____________________