[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Page 9778]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO MAYOR SHARON BRANSTITER

 Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, the late Oregon Governor Tom McCall 
once said, ``Heroes are not giant statues framed against a red sky. 
They are individuals who say, `This is my community, and it is my 
responsibility to make it better.'''
  I rise today with sadness because Oregon lost a true hero this past 
weekend with the passing of Sharon Branstiter, who had served as mayor 
of the wonderful community of Toledo since 1997. Few people have ever 
given more of their time, talents, and energy to make their community a 
better place than did Mayor Branstiter.
  I consider myself very privileged to have called Sharon my friend. In 
my job, there are many people who will tell me what they think I want 
to hear. I always knew that Sharon would tell me what I needed to hear. 
She expressed her opinions with candor and eloquence, and she always 
made it very clear that the top item on her agenda was making Toledo a 
better and more beautiful place in which to live, work, and raise a 
family.
  The Greek poet Sophocles wrote, ``One must wait until the evening to 
see how splendid the day has been.'' While the evening of Sharon's life 
came much to soon, I hope that her family and friends will take solace 
in the fact that Sharon could look back on a life filled with love and 
laughter, a life filled with accomplishment, and a life filled with 
making a positive difference and say that ``the day has indeed been 
splendid.''
  I will never visit Toledo without thinking of Sharon, and I am 
confident that her work will live on through the good work of all those 
who call Toledo home.

                          ____________________