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32-Year SAA Staffer Steven Mosley Dies

For 32 years, Steven Mosley spent his days keeping the 200-year-old Capitol in regal shape, working behind the scenes to clean offices, wax floors, move furniture and prepare conference rooms.

[IMGCAP(1)]But last week, Mosley died at home of a heart attack. He was 52.

His death came as a shock to his colleagues in the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms’ Capitol Facilities division, who remember him as a boisterous father figure with, in the words of co-worker Thomas Shaw, “a lot of bark and not a hell of a lot of bite.—

“No one was a stranger,— said Edward Brown, who worked with Mosley for 21 years. “You could be new on the job and he’d be messing with you.—

On Friday, Mosley’s colleagues swapped stories in their Capitol basement breakroom, recalling decades of weddings, birthdays, arguments and favors.

Mosley, they said, had a “good heart— and was always willing to help out a friend. When Shaw couldn’t afford to rent his daughter a limousine for her junior prom, Mosley showed up in his Mercedes-Benz and offered to chauffeur for the night. A few years later, Shaw’s son got the same treat.

He mowed his neighbors’ lawns, bought presents for needy families and invited friends over for grilled pork chops on the weekend. An enthusiastic Redskins fan, Mosley always opened his house to friends who wanted stop in and watch sports.

“Personally, for me, Steve was like a father/brother/uncle,— said Anthony Maree, who worked with Mosley for 10 years. “He was one of a kind.—

But Maree and others also said Mosley had a dry sense of humor, constantly teasing his close friends and lecturing younger workers on how to do the job right.

“You could argue with him all you want and it could be … colorful,— said Gary Richardson, who worked with Mosley for more than a decade. “But once the argument ended, it was over.—

Mosley was one of thousands of Capitol Hill employees who stay in the background, working amid Senators and staffers to do the essential jobs that keep the Capitol running.

One of the longest-serving workers in his division, he often doled out advice to new employees. Get to know the customer. Tailor your work to each individual. And of course: Leadership offices come first.

He became a fixture in the Capitol, and within hours of his death, Senators took to the floor to pay tribute to his work.

Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called him an “elder— in the Senate family, while Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) remembered him as someone always available to move some furniture or fix something in his office.

“If I had a picture of Steve Mosley, everyone would recognize him,— Reid said on Thursday. “He is a big man, always smiling.—

Mosley is survived by his wife of 26 years, Michelle, and his 25-year-old son, Steven Jr.

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