[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 3] [Senate] [Page 3643] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]TRIBUTE TO MITCH ALBOM Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, 25 years ago, an article appeared in the Detroit Free Press sports section headlined, ``Give Me a Sporting Chance, And I'll Give It Right Back.'' It was the debut column from a young writer just arrived from Florida, and he admitted to some nerves about writing for his new audience. ``Starting tomorrow, I ask your attention, your reaction, your letters, your laughter and, once in a while, the benefit of the doubt,'' he wrote. I doubt many Free Press readers knew that morning that they held the beginning of a journalistic legend in their hands. And the writer himself surely didn't know what he was starting. But thousands of columns, millions of laughs, more than a few tears, 28 million books, and dozens of awards later, Free Press sports columnist Mitch Albom has become a Detroit institution right alongside the beloved athletes he has covered. Recently, it was announced that Mitch Albom will receive the ultimate award for a sportswriter, the Red Smith Award from the Associated Press Sports Editors. Smith, the legendary New York writer, once said his demanding craft was really simple: ``All you do is sit down at a typewriter and open a vein.'' And Mitch Albom is a worthy successor to that legacy of writing with heart and emotion as well as style and precision. In thrilling victories and painful losses, fans of Michigan's sports teams have seen 25 years of sports history through Albom's observant eyes. They have gotten to know the State's towering sports figures--be they heroic, tragic, or both--through Albom's perceptive character sketches. That careful attention to the human element of sports allowed Albom to branch out into other areas. His ``Tuesdays with Morrie'' is one of the 100 best-selling books of all time. He is one of Michigan's most listened-to radio hosts, and a regular on ESPN television. And as his success has grown, so have his contributions to his community. His charitable endeavors include efforts to help disadvantaged students study the arts, get health care to homeless families, and gather volunteers for worthy local service projects. Recently, he labored mightily and successfully to get aid to earthquake victims in Haiti. In winning the Red Smith Award, Albom joins a list of the most honored names in sports journalism. The award speaks forcefully to the respect of his professional peers. For Michigan readers, however, Albom's ongoing legacy is his remarkable writing on the games and athletes who are so much a part of our State's identity and DNA and his contributions to improving his community. I congratulate him on this latest honor, and I thank him for 25 years of great journalism. The readers of Michigan and the Nation look forward to many, many years more. ____________________