Bertie Bowman (1931–2023), long-serving Congressional aide 

Bertie Bowman was a long-serving Congressional aide on Capitol Hill who got his start sweeping steps and ended his career as the longtime hearings manager for the Foreign Relations Committee.

• Died:bfafcOctober 25, 2023 (Who else died on October 25?)
• Details of death:bfafcDied at the age of 92.
• We invite you to share condolencesbfafcfor Bertie Bowman in ourbfaf7Guest Book.c2

Bertie Bowmane28099s legacy

Born in Summerton, South Carolina to sharecroppers and one of 14 children, Bowmane28099s life changed after a chance meeting with one of his statee28099s senators, Burnet Maybank (1899e280931954). The meeting sparked an idea in him: hee28099d go to Washington, D.C., and seek out a new life away from the grueling farm labor and harsh discipline of his father. At the age of 13, he did exactly that.

Bowman sought out Maybank after making it to the Capitol. The senator remembered him and helped him get a job sweeping the building steps for $2 a day. Bowman soon developed a reputation as a guy who could do it all. He worked odd jobs and won the respect of people in power from both sides of the aisle, developing complicated relationships with segregationists like former U.S. Senators Strom Thurmond (1902e280 2003) and Jesse Helms (1921e280932008). In 1965, Bowman was made a clerk for the Foreign Relations Committee, where he helped ensure meetings of monumental importance ran smoothly. He even supervised a 21-year-old Bill Clinton during that time.

In 1999, Sen. Helms made Bowman the hearing coordinator. He worked with the committee for 57 years, became the longest-serving Black congressional staffer in US history, and was the longest serving board member of the Senate Federal Credit Union. He also won the admiration and respect of some of the most powerful people in the country. In 2021, the United States Senate Federal Credit Union headquarters was named the Bertie Bowman Building in his honor. Bowman wrote a memoir, e2809cStep by Step,e2809d that tells his life story.

Bowman on having a building named after him

e2809cI didne28099t believe it at first. I was really shocked and honored. Isne28099t that great? I feel so honored. Ie28099m the happiest guy in the world.e2809de28094from a 2019 interview with CBS Mornings

Tributes to Bertie Bowman

Full obituary: The Washington Postc2

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