McConnell on the Passing of Senate Librarian Leona Faust
‘My prayers today are with Leona’s family, with her colleagues at the Senate Library, and with everyone across the Senate who spent decades admiring Leona’s commitment and expertise, and who are now joined together in mourning her loss.’
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding Leona Faust:
“Yesterday was a sad day for the Senate. We learned that we’d lost a distinguished, long-serving staff leader in our institution.
“Leona Faust had served her country as Senate Librarian for the past twelve years.
“And that key position was the capstone on a long and storied Senate career that had just entered its 45th year.
“Everyone who knew Leona had sterling praise for her work. I’ve heard our Librarian described by her friends and colleagues as devoted to the institution. As a true Senate all-star. As the first to volunteer whenever a task needed tackling.
“Leona was a beloved colleague. She was also an expert whose professionalism and institutional knowledge filled an essential niche in the Senate’s day-to-day functioning.
“As leader of a talented team, Leona was constantly looking for new ways to expand the resources the Library offers to Senators and our staff.
“She was instrumental in expanding the references and databases of the Senate Information System, especially as a pandemic left big chunks of the institution to working and researching remotely for a time.
“Year after year, she demonstrated her devotion, often without much fanfare.
“The Senate Library staff pull long hours attending to pressing questions here on the floor. Leona led by example. She made herself available at all hours.
“So the Senate hasn’t just lost a talented librarian who helped people find resources they needed.
“We’ve lost a true steward of this institution who had become a resource herself, in her own right.
“My prayers today are with Leona’s family, with her colleagues at the Senate Library, and with everyone across the Senate who spent decades admiring Leona’s commitment and expertise, and who are now joined together in mourning her loss.”
###
Related Issues: Tributes
Next Previous
