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REMARKS BY: TOMMY G. THOMPSON, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES PLACE: Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin DATE: October 1, 2001
Many of you were at the banquet we had in June and were so generous then, as you have been so often. I'm grateful and humbled by your donations to the Library and the Thompson Center.
Father Wild, thank you for your remarkable leadership in making this day possible. Your vision and energy have been so very inspirational. We're indebted to you and we thank you. Let me also thank the entire Marquette community for your response to the terrorist attacks of three weeks ago.
The day of the attacks, you held a campus-wide prayer service at the Gesu Chapel. Then, on the National Day of Prayer and Remembrance, Father Wild personally led a memorial service on behalf of the university. That's so typical of the compassion and patriotism of our great state.
We are being led by a great President and the American people are united. We will not just get through this difficult time. Under God, we're going to triumph.
Let me say very plainly that I love Marquette University. Both of Sue Ann's and my daughters attended Marquette, Tommi for her MBA and Kelli for her law degree. I've always been indebted to the university for the wonderful education they received.
The school is named for a remarkable man. Father Jacques Marquette was a missionary who preached tirelessly to thousands, and he was also a keen observer of the natural order.
In fact, Father Marquette was the first person ever to develop a theory concerning the running of the tides on the Great Lakes. He was a man of faith and of science. His tradition lives at his namesake university today.
The Raynor Library will set the standard for university library facilities nationwide. Marquette's Web says, and I quote, "The Raynor will be one of the few libraries in the country designed to assist users in all information formats. Staff with expertise in print, electronic, and a range of multimedia formats" will serve students and researchers.
Wow - and to think that when I was in college, I thought it the Dewey Decimal System was impressive .
I'm also so very honored to be associated with a man like John Raynor. Nearly 50,000 living Marquette alumni attended the university while he served as president. I knew him well and was privileged to call him my friend. His leadership expanded the university at every level - in adding undergraduate, graduate and professional programs . in tripling the size of the campus .and in substantially increasing the university's financial base.
Father Raynor left many legacies, but this library will be a daily reminder of his commitment to education, to young people and to our great state of Wisconsin. I'm proud to be associated with his memory in this wonderful new venture.
I chose Marquette to house my papers and memorabilia because the university has for so long been a leader in education here in Wisconsin and our country at large. While I was governor, I had no higher priority than quality education for our young people. That led my list, year after year.
At the Thompson Center for excellence in Education, the same goals we worked to further while I was governor will be strengthened even more.
I'm so excited about this facility. I look forward to coming back in a few years, walking through it, using its first- class resources and most of all, just watching young people study, research and prepare for their own futures.
Let me close by quoting from Marquette's own mission statement, which says that the purpose of the university is to "develop men and women who will dedicate their lives to the service of others, actively entering into the struggle for a more just society."
I can think of few higher goals for any institution of higher education. With the completion of this wonderful new library, Marquette will be all the closer to making those goals a reality.
Thank you again for being here today. May God bless you all.