On the recordOctober 21, 2015
I rise on behalf of the California Democratic congressional delegation to honor the life of Don Edwards, who passed away earlier this month at the age of 100 in his home in Carmel. Congressman Don Edwards was someone I was proud to know for many years. He was born in San Jose, California, in 1915, growing up on South 13th Street. Living in San Jose at an idyllic time, he took the trolley to play golf as a young man, attended public schools in San Jose, received his bachelor's degree from Stanford University, where he later studied law, and was admitted to the Bar Association of California in 1940. He became an FBI agent during the Depression. He used to talk about his service as an FBI agent, which he jokingly referred to as ``long hours looking for auto thieves in Indianapolis.'' But, in fact, he served with great distinction in the FBI, and he went on to serve in the United States Navy as an intelligence officer and a gunnery officer in World War II. He was first elected to represent what was then California's Ninth Congressional District in 1962, and he served for 32 years, until January 3, 1995. I remember the first time I saw Congressman Don Edwards. It was before he was a Congressman. He was giving a speech in Mitchell Park in Palo Alto, California. I was just out of elementary school, and I remember how impressed I was and inspired I was by his words.…
