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“IN MEMORY OF DAVID M. CAWTHORNE, JR., TRANSPORTATION JOURNALIST” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E230-E231 on Feb. 25, 1998.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
IN MEMORY OF DAVID M. CAWTHORNE, JR., TRANSPORTATION JOURNALIST
______
HON. BUD SHUSTER
of pennsylvania
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, February 25, 1998
Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, I wish to acknowledge with great sadness, the passing of a widely known and respected transportation journalist, Mr. David M. Cawthorne, Jr. His untimely passing at the age of 49 in January of this year has left a great gap in the Washington transportation community. Dave spent more than two decades covering regulatory issues at the Department of Transportation and the old Interstate Commerce Commission, as well as its successor, the Surface Transportation Board. It is probably safe to say that there is not a transportation lawyer, executive, or Washington representative who had not encountered Dave during his distinguished career. Many of the people he first met as Congressional staff or agency personnel have now risen to highly responsible executive positions in government and in the private sector. One small measure of this was the large number of his friends in the transportation community who recently attended his funeral in Washington. Rather than attempt to encapsulate Dave's career myself, I think that his personal legacy was better captured by the Chairperson of the Surface Transportation Board, Linda Morgan--herself a former Congressional staffer--in her memorial address at Dave's funeral. As a tribute to Mr. Cawthorne and the highest of journalistic standards he always stood for, I ask that her remarks be reprinted here.
In Remembrance of David M. Cawthorne, Jr.
Comments by Linda J. Morgan, Chairman, Surface Transportation Board,
January 21, 1998
Today we are gathered to celebrate our association with Dave, and in particular the many ways in which he inspired us and the many gifts that he gave us. I am truly honored to be able to share some of my thoughts about a very special friend and colleague.
I have thought a great deal about Dave over the last couple of days, as I know all of you have. In thinking about Dave, I am reminded that, in a town where there is so much focus on what titles people have or what job accomplishments people can claim, it is important to remember that what is a true test of a person is not so much what that person has done, but how that person has done it, or who that person really is.
Dave was quite a person. He was an individual of immeasurable human decency, profound inner strength, deep intellectual curiosity and commitment to thoroughness, impressive personal and professional integrity, and an unforgettable uniqueness.
All of us can relay our own experiences with Dave's decency. There was the call to congratulate you on something or the offer of support when you needed it, or the way he completed almost every contact with ``sorry to disturb you'' or ``thanks so much for your time.'' Recently, my 12-year old daughter was with me at the office, and we ran into Dave and had a conversation. When I told her that my friend Dave had died, she said: ``I remember Dave. He was that man we met at your office who seemed so nice.'' Dave, seen clearly through the unjaded eyes of a 12-year old, was a person who always remembered mutual respect and common courtesy.
And then there was his inner strength. No matter what personal or professional challenge he faced, he kept on going. He seemed to understand that life in its fullest is one challenge after another to tackle, one obstacle after another to overcome. And perhaps because of that awareness, he never stopped trying, and he never lost his spirit, his good humor, and his compassion for others. Wish that we all could struggle with such grace.
And then there was his intellectual curiosity and thoroughness. I have worked in the transportation arena for almost 20 years and had the fortune of dealing with Dave as a transportation reporter throughout that time. I always admired Dave's commitment to a full understanding of all sides of the issues and dedication to accuracy and enlightenment. He cared about the subject matter, and he wanted his reporting to be constructive and to make a positive difference. I always had great confidence in Dave's work.
And then there was his personal and professional integrity. In a town where integrity sometimes seems to be an afterthought, if a thought at all, Dave always thought about that first. Speaking as someone who has spent a great deal of time watching her back, and the backs of others, I can say that I never had that problem with Dave. In fact, Dave was one of those rare people who tried to protect other people's backs. There was never a worry that he would use information to harm others for his own interest. There was never a worry that he would compromise your wishes to suit his own. Dave taught us that so much more can be accomplished with mutual trust.
And then finally there was his unforgettable uniqueness. There was the way he opened up a telephone conversation--I will not try to do that injustice by attempting to imitate it. Or there was the funny tidbit that he always passed on. Or there was the insightful analysis of what was really going on. Or there was the kind word when you needed it.
Let me now share a reading that I think puts Dave's uniqueness in the proper perspective.
``Give Your Unique Gift. Each of us, as we journey through life, has the opportunity to find and to give his or her unique gift. Whether this gift is quiet or small in the eyes of the world does not matter at all--not at all; it is through the finding and the giving that we may come to know the joy that lies at the center of both the dark times and the light.'' (Helen M. Luke in Kaleidoscope) \1\
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\1\ ``100 Ways to Keep Your Soul Alive,'' Living Deeply and Fully Every Day, edited by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, 1994.
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Dave certainly found and gave his unique gift of himself to all of us.
A while back, Dave called me to talk about various matters, and in the course of that conversation he thanked me for my friendship. He commented that I had always been a friend, even when he felt he was not deserving or when others seemed to have forsaken him, and he thanked me for that.
I have thought about that call a lot recently, and I want to say to you, Dave, that you had it all wrong.
We are the ones who should say thank you to you--for your decency, for your inner strength, for your intellectual curiosity, for your integrity, and above all for being you.
You have shown us the way. You have shown us the right way. We are all eternally grateful.
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