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“TRIBUTE TO GWENDOLYN A. BROWN” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Commerce was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E426 on Feb. 24, 1995.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
TRIBUTE TO GWENDOLYN A. BROWN
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HON. JULIAN C. DIXON
of california
in the house of representatives
Thursday February 23, 1995
Mr. DIXON. Mr. Speaker, on March 1, 1995, Ms. Gwendolyn A. Brown will be sworn in as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health, Budgets, and Programs at the Pentagon. Although her departure from my office creates a void that will be difficult to fill, I am delighted to have this opportunity to announce her well-deserved selection to this exciting and challenging new position.
Gwen arrived on Capitol Hill in August 1984 as a LEGIS fellow from the International Trade Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce. At Commerce, she served as a country specialist for North Africa, and was responsible for the promotion of United States commercial interests in that region of the world. Her considerable expertise in international trade affairs proved of invaluable service to me in my work as a then-member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations. I was so impressed with her knowledge and performance that I offered her the senior legislative position in my office upon completion of her fellowship.
Thus it was that on April 22, 1985, Gwen officially became my legislative director. Over the course of the next several years, Gwen provided exceptional service as the principal member of my staff responsible for appropriations issues and the direction of my legislative program. She did an outstanding job and proved an invaluable asset to my office.
For her last 4 years on the Hill, Gwen handled all of my defense appropriations work. She immersed herself in the arcane and intricate details on a panoply of military matters. In time, she developed considerable proficiency in defense material, working tirelessly and gaining support for programs important to the California economy, including preservation of the Los Angeles Air Force Base and the Long Beach Naval Shipyard. Her keen intellect, knowledge about the appropriations process, and her rapid ability to grasp complex issues, were of immeasurable benefit as we sought to preserve programs important to the southern California area.
Mr. Speaker, it is indeed an honor and a pleasure to have this opportunity to salute the exemplary work of Ms. Gwendolyn A. Brown. Employees of her caliber do not come along often, and I am especially grateful to her for her years of selfless dedication and commitment to me and the citizens of Los Angeles. I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating her as she embarks on a new chapter in a distinguished career of public service. Please join me in wishing her and her husband, the Reverend Dr. Cameron Byrd, best wishes for continued success and happiness in the future.
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