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[Pages S3473-S3474]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO JACK MIDDLETON
Mrs. SHAHEEN. Mr. President, today I wish to salute Jack
Middleton for his 60-plus years of dedicated service to the Mount
Washington Observatory. Jack is stepping down this year from his
longtime post as secretary of the board of trustees. In this role, he
helped to build the observatory into a respected authority on climate
research, and he leaves a legacy worthy of our praise and our
gratitude.
Those of us who know Jack recognize him as president of McLane
Middleton, one of the largest law practices in the Granite State and a
firm that encourages its attorneys to be active participants in their
communities. This is undoubtedly a reflection of one of Jack's core
beliefs. He has been a force in raising awareness and funds for
programs like DOVE--the Domestic Violence Emergency Project--that
provide legal representation free of charge for people in need. Jack
has also served as president of the United Way and board member of the
New Hampshire Charitable Foundation, New Hampshire Public Television,
The White Mountain School, and The Nature Conservancy, always finding a
way to employ his diverse talents in pursuit of a greater good.
Those of us who really know Jack understand that he is just as
comfortable on top of a mountain as he is in a courtroom or boardroom.
It was a young Sergeant Middleton--fresh out of his service in the
Marine Corps--who arrived at the Appalachian Mountain Club's Pinkham
Notch Camp in 1952 for a new job at a warming hut on Mount Washington's
Tuckerman Ravine. He was drawn there after hiking in the White
Mountains as a child and staying with friends in the Madison and Lake
of the Clouds Huts as a teenager. This new venture was the beginning of
a decades-long, unbroken connection to New Hampshire's highest peak.
While working as an observer at the Mount Washington Observatory in
the early 1950s, Jack discovered another love--Ann Dodge, the daughter
of Observatory founder Joe Dodge and Jack's future wife. Dating the
boss's daughter has it challenges, but anyone could see that the bond
between Jack and Annie was immediate and strong. On his days off, Jack
would hike down the mountain to see her at the AMC Pinkham Notch Hut.
Annie would return the favor when she was free, scaling the 6,288-foot
mountain to visit Jack when his duties kept him inside the Observatory.
Jack left his job to attend law school after 1 year at the
Observatory. Shortly after graduating, he was tapped to serve as
corporate secretary by a board of trustees who both recognized his
potential and appreciated his love of the mountain and its summit. That
was 1957. Jack has been diligently taking minutes at board meetings
ever since, and he remains an outstanding ambassador of the Observatory
and an outspoken supporter of its important role in climate research.
Over the past few decades, the Mount Washington Observatory has
emerged as a significant institution of science education and plays a
vital role in helping advance the public understanding of the
complexities of our natural world. Its Weather Discovery Center in
North Conway has become a popular resource in communicating these
findings to classrooms and workshops across the globe. Throughout each
step
[[Page S3474]]
of this journey, Jack Middleton has been there with his expert
guidance, his dry wit and his devotion to preserving the past and
shaping the future of this Northern New Hampshire gem.
On behalf of the people of New Hampshire, I ask my colleagues and all
Americans to join me in thanking Jack Middleton for his service and
wishing him all the best in the years ahead.
____________________
