[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 14]
[Senate]
[Page 20436]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                        TRIBUTE TO EDWIN L. COX

 Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I would like to recognize a 
great Texan and great American, Mr. Edwin L. Cox and to call out his 
outstanding service to the nation through his support of the Library of 
Congress. On Thursday, October 5th, The Library of Congress will be 
celebrating its bicentennial and the 10th Anniversary of the James 
Madison Council. The Madison Council is the Library's private 
philanthropic organization and, along with Council Chairman John W. 
Kluge, Ed Cox helped found and build the Council from a handful of 
members in 1990 to more than one hundred committed supporters today.
  Madison Council members have supported more than 200 Library projects 
since 1990. These gifts account for almost half of all private gifts to 
the Library. Ed served as the first Vice-Chairman of the Madison 
Council when it was founded in 1990, and became the first Chairman of 
the Council's Steering Committee in 1992. To support the Library in 
acquiring new and rare items, Ed and fellow Madison Council member 
Caroline Ahmanson formed the Acquisitions Committee, which has been 
instrumental in acquiring rare and historically significant items for 
the Library. Ed also established the Edwin L. Cox American Legacy 
Endowment, which makes possible the purchase of rare and important 
materials highlighting our history.
  Ed Cox's long record of service to his country includes his duty in 
the United States Navy, where he earned the rank of lieutenant. He left 
to begin building one of America's great independent energy companies, 
Cox Oil and Gas. He has translated his success into a strong record of 
public activism, joining the boards of the Salvation Army, the American 
Red Cross, the Texas Cancer Society, and the Dallas Society for 
Crippled Children.
  In 1978, recognizing his business acumen and boundless contributions 
to a better society, Southern Methodist University renamed its business 
school in his honor, and The Edwin L. Cox School of Business is 
recognized as one of America's best.
  In this Bicentennial year of the Library, Ed continues to give of 
himself and to lead others in support of the Library. He chaired the 
Council's Bicentennial Committee and mobilized Council members to 
participate in the Library's Bicentennial programs. He has also been a 
key member of the Library's Trust Fund Board for the past 10 years.
  James H. Billington, the Librarian of Congress, has called Ed ``one 
of the Library's most valued friends.'' His dedication and service have 
made the Library's collections richer and its services to the Congress 
and the Nation more comprehensive than ever. All Americans are the 
beneficiaries of Edwin L. Cox's generosity in enriching one of our 
nation's greatest institutions.

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