2019 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 249
BY SENATORS PEACOCK, ALARIO, ALLAIN, APPEL, BARROW, BISHOP,
BOUDREAUX, CARTER, CHABERT, CLAITOR, COLOMB,
CORTEZ, DONAHUE, ERDEY, FANNIN, GATTI, HENSGENS,
HEWITT, JOHNS, LAFLEUR, LAMBERT, LONG, LUNEAU,
MARTINY, MILKOVICH, MILLS, MIZELL, MORRELL, MORRISH,
PETERSON, PRICE, RISER, GARY SMITH, JOHN SMITH, TARVER,
THOMPSON, WALSWORTH, WARD AND WHITE
A RESOLUTION
To commend Susan P. Montague upon her forty-five years of public service to the
Legislature of Louisiana and to congratulate her upon the occasion of her retirement
from the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana.
WHEREAS, Susan "Suzi" Price Montague has been employed forty-five years with
legislative staff services beginning in 1974 when she came to work for the Louisiana
Legislative Council as a PBX operator; and
WHEREAS, during her tenure, she has occupied positions as telephone operator,
proofreader, copy printer, subject indexer, citator editor, and drafter of resolution requests;
and
WHEREAS, with her cheerful demeanor and constant smile, Suzi has provided
advice, whether solicited or not, and has been touted to be a fount of trivial information and
institutional knowledge; and
WHEREAS, born Susan Alice Price, the first child of Bill and Mary Price, in
Monroe, Louisiana, and reared in Rayville, Louisiana, until the age of sixteen when her
family moved to Baker, Louisiana; and
WHEREAS, she graduated from Baker High School and attended Louisiana State
University where she attained a Bachelor of Science in elementary education in 1973 and
a Master of Public Administration (MPA) in 2004; and
WHEREAS, Suzi answered an advertisement seeking the services of a telephone
operator for the Louisiana Legislative Council, the forerunner agency that would become the
separate legislative staffs of the Senate and House of Representatives; and
WHEREAS, she was hired during the 1974 Regular Session and since that time has
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participated in ninety-four regular and extraordinary legislative sessions; and
WHEREAS, 1974 was the nascent era of information technology and in the venue
of legislative services; bill drafting was a pen and paper operation, bill typing was done on
"mag-cards", corrections were made with scissors, tape, white-out correcting fluid, and some
fancy work known as "cut and clip"; and
WHEREAS, before the advent of legislative computer services, legislative sessions
required months of preparation; Suzi worked fourteen-hour days for weeks on end along
with fellow staffers that would become close lifelong friends and nearly family; it was a
Baby Boomer generation of exciting young legal professionals with such camaraderie that
every marriage and birth was celebrated and every loss and death mourned; and
WHEREAS, with receipt of her MPA in 2004 and at the urging of staff attorney
Diane Burkhart, Suzi began to write resolutions; her talent for prose and expression
impressed her colleagues, and commendations and condolences of some importance came
across her desk concerning state dignitaries, legislators, and unusual requests when
circumstances fell outside the realm of the everyday commendation; and
WHEREAS, on March 20, 1976, Suzi married Carter, whose surname, Montague,
the general public can neither spell nor pronounce; they have been married for forty-three
years and have tolerated one another rather graciously; they are planning a retirement tour
of the lower forty-eight states; and
WHEREAS, Carter and Suzi are the crazy aunt and uncle that have opened their
home to St. Patrick Day Parade celebrations and water balloon fights; and
WHEREAS, her future plans include volunteer work, quilting and sewing for charity,
landscaping her yard with copious amounts of flowers and shrubs, and in particular,
spending time outdoors during spring and early summer with legions of old friends; and
WHEREAS, she plans on spending more time with her two brothers, Walter and
William, and with six nieces and nephews, and eight great-nieces and great-nephews; and
WHEREAS, she shall miss living and working in the Louisiana State Capitol with
its history and beautiful Art Deco appointments, and she shall also miss the view from the
sixteenth floor where she could watch beautiful sunsets, mark the changing of the seasons,
predict the weather, and observe the urban landscape of the city; and
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WHEREAS, she shall sincerely miss the day-to-day banter with long-time friends
and perhaps miss the excitement that steadily builds as the next legislative session draws
near; and
WHEREAS, in the days that follow, Suzi Montague shall fondly recall political high
points and memories from the past, the rarefied environment that is state government, and
the colorful cast of characters that has graced the state legislature during her tenure.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that congratulations are hereby extended to
Suzi Montague on the occasion of her well-deserved retirement from the Senate of the state
of Louisiana.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that best wishes are hereby extended to her from
those legislators, staff members, and friends, both past and present, who have shared their
experiences with her at the state capitol.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Suzi is hereby endowed with the mythical
"Chuck Burns Retirement Blessing" that she may live a long, happy, and carefree life from
this day forward.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
Susan P. Montague.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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