Steve Lynch: “I want to thank my friend, Mr. Capuano, for reserving this time on our behalf to recognize our great friend. Mr.…”

“I want to thank my friend, Mr. Capuano, for reserving this time on our behalf to recognize our great friend. Mr. Speaker, Barry Sullivan has been here a long time. I know that the title ``cloakroom manager'' has a rather antiquated sound to it. As a matter of fact, there is a rumor around here that Barry Sullivan actually was the manager of the cloakroom back when they still wore cloaks. I am not sure he has been here that long, but I do know the beginning of his service started with marching in the St. Patrick's Day parade in South Boston with Joe Moakley, our dear departed friend. Now, after 33 years, our friend has decided to retire from his position. I think it is a truly bittersweet moment for a lot of us. Barry has been an extension of our staffs. I will miss the daily contact that I have with Barry, because most of the time he is reminding me to make all the votes. But he is also an extension of our families, in many ways. So many of us travel back and forth from our home districts--mine, in South Boston, and around the city of Boston-- back here to Washington. And Barry is an extension of that. I have had the good fortune to call Barry my friend since I arrived here in Washington, D.C., shortly after the attacks on September 11. I came in in a special election. I was the only Democrat elected at that time. I was given one bit of advice by my friends. They said, Make sure you get to know Barry Sullivan in the cloakroom.…”