On the recordSeptember 29, 2010
Mr. President, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the memory of a dedicated public servant and leader, Senator Ted Stevens. After a lifetime of unprecedented service to his State and Nation, Senator Stevens passed away in Alaska on August 9, 2010, at the age of 86. His death was a loss to the U.S. Senate, the State of Alaska, and the Nation. A decorated World War II pilot who survived a deadly 1978 plane crash, Senator Stevens was the longest-serving Republican Senator in the Nation's history and Alaska's most beloved political figure. Known as a giant in the Senate and affectionately referred to as ``Uncle Ted'' by his constituents, Stevens helped usher Alaska into statehood in 1959 and was instrumental in its economic growth. He was first and foremost a devoted advocate of Alaska and its people. Born in Indianapolis, IN, Senator Stevens attended Oregon State University before serving as an Air Force pilot in World War II. He went on to graduate from the University of California Los Angeles-- UCLA--with a bachelor of arts degree in political science, and from Harvard University with a juris doctor degree in law. After a successful career as a member of the Alaska House of Representatives, Stevens was appointed to the U.S. Senate, making him the third Senator in the State's history. Senator Stevens is greatly admired for what he did during his four decades of service in the U.S. Senate.…





