[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Pages 13919-13921]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 RETIREMENT OF ROBIN BAILEY--Continued

  Mr. ENZI. There is only one Robin Bailey. I was fortunate to have the 
original on my team since I first came to Washington to represent the 
people of the State of Wyoming in the Senate.
  Robin's story and her service in the Senate began in 1977 in 
Cheyenne. She heard there was an opening on Malcolm Wallop's staff. It 
sounded like an interesting job. It would give her a chance to work on 
behalf of the people of Wyoming. She submitted an application for the 
position of office manager. Fortunately, Malcolm made the perfect

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choice and added her to his staff. He was fortunate Robin was there to 
make sure everything was done and done well.
  After serving on Malcolm Wallop's staff for a few years, Robin's 
husband Ron accepted a job in Rock Springs. They packed their bags and 
moved there. That was not to be the end of Robin's Senate career. In 
1984, Senator Al Simpson chose her to take the challenges of his office 
in Rock Springs. Later, the Baileys moved to Gillette, my hometown, and 
Senator Simpson just changed where she worked.
  Here is where I come in. I will never forget 1996 and the decision my 
wife Diana and I made to run for the Senate. Things came together for 
us and soon after the victory parties were over it became apparent I 
had a bigger issue to contend with--putting my staff together. Now that 
the campaign had ended I had to make sure we continued to provide the 
people of Wyoming the support and assistance to which they had come to 
rely on over the years.
  I started to go through the stacks of resumes and then visited with 
my predecessor Al Simpson. Over the years he put together a remarkable 
staff. Some of them were willing to stay on. I was delighted Robin 
Bailey was willing to continue to serve the people of Wyoming out of 
the Gillette office.
  Over the years my staff and I have noticed that Robin has two 
responses to most questions. Either she knows the answer or she knows 
how to find the answer. I don't think anyone has a better or more 
extensive system of resources and contacts than she does. Having her on 
my staff came in handy when in 2000 I had to find a new State director. 
Dee Rodekohr, who was Senator Simpson's State director and then my 
State director, decided to retire and enjoy all she earned with her 
service to the people of the State. Fortunately, she and I and all my 
staff knew we had someone already prepared who would be a perfect fit 
and it was Robin Bailey.
  We extended her duties and we put her in charge of all the State 
offices. She not only exceeded our expectations, she took everything to 
the next level. She was a constant source of support, guidance, and 
direction for the people in my State offices, and she was always there 
with a word of good advice or suggestion about how to take on a 
problem. She was a great mentor to my staff--the new ones and the more 
seasoned veterans because of her great love of and knowledge about 
Wyoming. She is the kind of resource every office needs to have if we 
are to do the best possible job of taking care of the people of our 
home State.
  My chief of staff has often said that Robin is the best and most 
natural supervisor he had ever met, and every day she has been on our 
staff she has proven the truth of those words and her value as one of 
my team leaders. Robin is one of the people who stands out from all the 
rest. She is known and respected by all. She has a talent for not only 
knowing what is going on in Wyoming but also understanding what it 
means in the short and long term. Robin has never worked for me. She 
has always worked with me. That is part of what made her a great asset 
for Senator Malcolm Wallop, Senator Al Simpson, and me. That makes 
three generations of Wyoming congressional delegation and family.
  She could write a book about being an effective State director. It 
would be the how-to manual of all time. It would help a person to learn 
how to be an effective leader, help others, be the eyes and ears of 
what is happening, and enjoy the job--all at the same time.
  A big part of the job has been traveling around the State to see what 
is going on and how people feel about it. In my office I relied on 
Robin to travel around Wyoming and represent me at a long list of 
meetings, hearings, and presentations. We wanted her there because she 
is a good listener. She not only hears what the people have to say, she 
has an uncanny sense of understanding what they are driving at and how 
to best address that. She would let me know what she saw and heard and 
it was the next best thing to being there myself. You have heard the 
expression, ``You cannot be everywhere at once.'' Robin has been my 
solution to that problem.
  Her travels allowed her to get to know people in every corner of the 
State. She not only enjoys meeting people but welcomes the chance to 
get to know them and to help them with their problems. That is why she 
has been able to make a difference over the years in more ways than we 
will ever know.
  Her life has not been without challenges, however. One such challenge 
came about when her husband Ron began to have serious issues with his 
heart and then Alzheimer's. It was a difficult time for her, but she 
never complained about what she had to do. She just did it. She honored 
her commitment to her husband and she continued to provide him with the 
support, care, and attention that had always been a hallmark of their 
relationship. When he passed away and she lost this great love of her 
life, she thought it might be time to consider making changes in the 
rest of her life as well. When Robin told Diana and me that she felt it 
was time for her to retire and follow a different path in life, we did 
what most every one of us would do. We told her to take a few years to 
make up her mind. Unfortunately, that didn't work and now she is making 
plans for the next chapter of her life.
  She will be spending more time with her family, especially her 
grandchildren. She has already shown she is a very special--in fact, a 
spectacular--grandmother. I know her family will enjoy having her take 
a more active role in their lives.
  I know she will continue to make a difference helping others and she 
will continue to be a great gift for all who know her and for all those 
she is soon to meet. I don't think Diana and I have ever met someone 
who is more focused or determined to help others. For Robin every day 
that is spent making life easier for someone else is a good day.
  We are all sorry to see Robin close this chapter of her life, but we 
know she is doing it for all the right reasons. She said she had 
reached a point in her life when it seemed to be a time to try 
something new. We will miss her wealth of resources, knowledge, skills, 
and abilities that cannot be replaced. Over the years she has set such 
a high mark of excellence. Her achievements, the milestones she 
established in my office for outstanding effort and accomplishment, and 
her determination to make Wyoming a better place to live from one 
corner to the other will be the legacy of her service to the Senate, to 
the people, the State of Wyoming, and to our Nation.
  In the years to come, each member of my staff will take away a 
different favorite memory of working with Robin. For my chief of staff 
it will always be the way in which she brought a solution with her to 
any discussion of any problem. For others it will be the way she would 
always find a way to handle an issue no matter how difficult or 
perplexing or how she seemed to not only be familiar with someone's 
issue, she also seemed to know almost everyone who was involved. For my 
part, I will always remember how much it meant to me to know I could 
ask her to take on an assignment and leave it with her knowing it would 
be done well. She always found a way to do what was needed and expected 
and then some more.
  Perhaps her greatest gift is her ability to effectively manage time 
and resources. For Robin it is not a problem if there is only 24 hours 
in a day because she makes the best use of every minute of every hour.
  Good luck, Robin, and may God continue to bless you and all those who 
come into your life in the years to come. You will be missed, but we 
will know where to find you. It is good to know you will never be more 
than a phone call away. We hope you fully enjoy your retirement.
  You have earned it and then some.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida.
  Mr. RUBIO. Thank you, Madam President.
  I ask unanimous consent that I be recognized to speak for up to 10 
minutes in morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?

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  Without objection, it is so ordered.

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