[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Page 12780]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     REMEMBERING WALTER SHORENSTEIN

 Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, it is with a heavy heart that I ask 
my colleagues to join me today in honoring the memory of an 
extraordinary real estate investor, philanthropist, Presidential 
adviser, civic leader and dear friend of mine, Walter Shorenstein. 
Walter passed away on June 24, 2010. He was 95 years old. Walter's 
legendary entrepreneurship and civic involvement will benefit future 
generations of Americans for decades to come.
  Walter Herbert Shorenstein was born into a hard-working middle class 
family in Glen Cove, New York on February 23, 1915. He briefly attended 
the University of Pennsylvania before cutting his undergraduate studies 
short in order to serve his country in World War II. During the war, 
Walter was stationed in North Africa, where he managed logistics and 
resources for troops in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Walter met his future 
wife Phyllis while serving as a major at Travis Air Force Base in 
California. They were married in 1945, and Walter began his real estate 
career upon moving to San Francisco in 1946.
  Walter joined the commercial real estate firm, Milton Meyer & 
Company, and became its only partner in 1951. He later purchased the 
company and in 1960, began rapidly expanding its holdings over the next 
three decades. At various times, the company, which was renamed 
Shorenstein Co. in 1989, has owned numerous notable buildings including 
the Bank of America Tower in San Francisco, the John Hancock Center in 
Chicago, and the Washington Harbour Complex in Washington, DC. The 
Shorenstein Co., under the leadership of Walter's son, Douglas, 
currently controls roughly 30 million square feet of commercial real 
estate nationwide.
  In addition to his exemplary business savvy, Walter was recognized 
for his sharp intuition and diplomacy skills, and ultimately served as 
an adviser to three Presidents. President Lyndon Johnson appointed him 
to serve as an adviser on trade negotiations. President Jimmy Carter 
appointed Walter to the U.S. delegation that led peace talks between 
Israel and Egypt in 1978, and to the Committee for the Preservation of 
the White House. During the Clinton administration, Walter was 
appointed to serve on the board of directors of the Corporation for 
National Service and the U.S. Commerce Department Industry Policy 
Advisory Committee. In 1999, President Clinton presented Walter with 
the Democratic National Committee's Lifetime Achievement Award for his 
active service and commitment to the Democratic Party.
  Later in life, Walter began donating both his time and money to 
laudable civic efforts. In 1975, he led a group that placed 2,000 
Vietnamese orphans in loving homes in the United States. In 1993, he 
played a pivotal role in preventing the San Francisco Giants from 
moving to Florida. A lifelong advocate for education, Walter 
contributed heavily to several prestigious educational programs and 
institutes. Along with his wife, he founded the Joan Shorenstein Center 
on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University's 
Kennedy School of Government, named for his talented daughter who lost 
her life to cancer in 1985. Walter also funded programs at Stanford 
University's Asia-Pacific Research Center and the Institute of East 
Asian Studies at the University of California, Berkeley.
  Walter stood out as a driven entrepreneur who cared deeply for his 
community. He will be remembered by his friends and colleagues not only 
for his business savvy, but also for his tremendous sense of civic 
responsibility. His vision and hard work greatly shaped and influenced 
the city of San Francisco, and his civic contributions and leadership 
skills improved our Nation.
  Walter is survived by his son Douglas; his daughter Carole 
Shorenstein Hays; and his six grandchildren. My thoughts are with 
Walter's family at this difficult time.

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