[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 9]
[Senate]
[Page 12664]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         REMEMBERING DON DICKEY

 Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, Don Dickey, a longtime resident 
of Juneau, AK, passed away on June 25, 2011, at the age of 89. A native 
of Stockton, CA, Don moved to Alaska in 1952 to manage the Fairbanks 
Chamber of Commerce. He returned to California in 1955 to work for the 
California State Chamber but in 1960 decided Alaska would be his home. 
It was then that he relocated, once again to Alaska, to organize the 
Alaska State Chamber of Commerce. He served as president for the Alaska 
State Chamber for 22 years.
  In 1981, Don was named director of the Alaska Division of Tourism, 
working for Governor Hammond and then Governor Sheffield. He was a key 
player in the growth of Alaska's tourism industry.
  Terry Miller, who served as Don's deputy when he directed the Alaska 
Division of Tourism remembers Don's effort to persuade all of those in 
the Alaska tourism business to join together in a cooperative marketing 
effort to sell Alaska as a destination, rather than their individual 
businesses. ``He got the little mom and pop operations, the cruise 
companies, the airlines, everybody with a stake in it to pool their 
marketing dollars.'' Alaska's former Lieutenant Governor John Coghill 
described Don as, ``the one who probably laid the blueprint for what 
happened later.'' What happened later was the emergence of Alaska as 
the premier visitor destination it is today.
  Those who knew Don best describe him in these terms: classy, gentle, 
dynamic, charming, a great promoter of Alaska, and a very funny guy. 
His admirers refer to him as one ``who could totally captivate a room 
and be very persuasive,'' and as one ``who could inspire and motivate 
others.''
  I have known Don since I was a young girl growing up in southeast 
Alaska. He always had a joke, a story, or funny quip to share. My 
family and I have fond memories of good times spent together.
  On behalf of the U.S. Senate and the people of Alaska, grateful for 
his leadership, as well as his wit, I extend condolences to Don's wife 
Gen, his children Dru and Dane, and all of those who mourn the loss of 
this exemplary Alaskan.

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