Waldorf, MD – An unexpected thing occurred when Maryland Congressman Steny Hoyer [D – District 5] visited Grace Christian Academy of Maryland Friday, May 25 and was about to speak to a group of students. The lights in the chapel where the session was to take place went out. Despite the darkness, GCA Student Government Chaplain Christopher Collignon, who was introducing the congressman, used his cell phone as a guiding light to finish his written remarks. As Hoyer began his talk the lights were restored. “It’s better to turn on a cell phone than to curse the darkness,” said Hoyer, who noted a current member of his staff and a niece attended GCA.
The House of Representatives’ current minority whip told the story of how he got into politics. In late April 1959, while a student at the University of Maryland Hoyer was on campus when Massachusetts U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy arrived at the College Park campus in a fancy convertible. Kennedy, who was preparing to seek the U.S. presidency, was on campus to deliver an address to students. Hoyer decided to go hear Kennedy speak. The future U.S. president spoke about “young people getting involved.”
According to the University of Maryland archives “Terrapin Tales,” Kennedy addressed over 5,000 students that day in Cole Field House. Many students in attendance told the campus newspaper, the Diamondback, that Kennedy’s talk “helped galvanize the student body and encouraged them to be more aware of politics.”
For Hoyer, JFK’s address was, according to the congressman, a life-changer. After a few lackluster semesters at Maryland, Hoyer changed his major and began preparing for law school and a career in politics. “Understanding what you want to do makes all the difference in the world,” Hoyer told the GCA students. Seven years after JFK addressed the University of Maryland students, Hoyer ran for and was elected to the Maryland Senate.
Currently, Hoyer is the longest-serving Democrat in the U.S. Congress. He admitted dealing with other members of Congress can be difficult. However, “90 percent of the people I deal with are constructive, polite.” He told the students that they can expect to encounter people who are disagreeable on their journeys through life but “everybody we meet is a child of God.”
Despite currently being a leader in Congress’s minority, Hoyer declared, “giving up is not an option,” adding he hopes to achieve “more jobs for more Americans and wages that will support them. I want access to adequate, affordable healthcare. I want to protect our environment. I also want to keep Americans safe.” Hoyer told students that compromises must be made on a daily basis. “None of us can do it all our way,”
Hoyer’s visit to the Waldorf school began with a brief meeting with GCA Student Government members and School Director Dr. Lorne Wenzel. After his brief remarks and question and answer session, Hoyer posed for pictures with several students and faculty members.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com
