Stevens’s hires:

• Staff Director Lisa J. Sutherland, 48, was deputy staff director for the past eight years on the Senate Appropriations Committee, which Stevens previously chaired. Sutherland began working for Stevens as an intern in 1977. “I have spent more time with him now than my parents,” she joked. 

• Deputy staff director Christine Kurth, 34, previously served as deputy general counsel for the Appropriations Committee.  She, too, interned with Stevens and returned to Capitol Hill in 2000 to serve on the Senate Appropriations Interior Subcommittee. A graduate of Valparaiso University in Indiana, she enjoys hiking and fishing on the Kenai river and traveling with her husband. 

• Chief Counsel David Russell, 33, began working for Stevens in 1997 and served most recently as his deputy chief of staff. Russell, a graduate of Boston University School of Law and the  University of Washington, said his greatest accomplishment in life is being a father and a husband. He enjoys reading, playing golf and fishing in Alaska. 

• Senior policy adviser on Maritime, Oceans, and Atmosphere Matthew Paxton, 31, served as legislative director in Stevens’s Senate office. Noting that this is “an interesting time in the development of ocean policy,” he said he hopes to help Stevens pass legislation to “implement sound policy for the stewardship of our nation’s oceans and coastlines.” “I have been told committee work is much different than personal office grind,” he added. His hobbies include skiing, basketball and watching sports. 

• Communications Director Melanie Alvord, 37, served in several capacities in Steven’s personal office, and as communications director for the Appropriations Committee since 2003. A graduate of the University of Virginia, Alvord enjoys reading, photography, music, cross-country skiing and swimming.

Inouye’s hires:

• Minority Staff Director Margaret Cummisky has worked for Inouye for the past 18 years and, as his legislative director since 1991, has managed an extensive range of commerce-related authorization and appropriations work. As a working mother, she said her greatest hobby is rediscovering life through the eyes of her 7- and 9-year-old sons. 

• Deputy Minority Staff Director and General Counsel Sam Whitehorn, 51, has been the Aviation Subcommittee’s senior counsel for the past 14 years. Whitehorn was the lead staff negotiator for the post-Sept. 11 Aviation and Transportation Security Act’s airline bailout legislation, FAA reform legislation and a long list of other aviation bills. A graduate of the University of Denver and its law school, Whitehorn enjoys the outdoor life, especially tennis and golf.

• Policy Director Lila Helms, 42, most recently was the Democratic clerk on the Commerce, Justice, State, Judiciary and Related Appropriations Subcommittee. A graduate of the University of South Carolina, Helms has been working on Capitol Hill, mostly on commerce issues, for the past 18 years. Helms enjoys gardening and piano.

• Communications Director Andy Davis, 32, was Sen. John Kerry’s (D-Mass.) presidential campaign spokesman. He began his career on the Hill as a staff assistant to then-Rep. David Skaggs (D-Colo.) and later worked as press secretary for now-retired Sen. Fritz Hollings (D-S.C.). He said he is looking forward to focusing on national issues that resound in everyday life. “Hopefully, I can help the public better understand this Committee’s work and how it affects them,” he said. A University of Colorado graduate, he enjoys hiking, camping, learning Spanish and traveling.

• Dabney Hegg will help staff the Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine. He is another former Hollings staffer and most recently served as his legislative assistant for agriculture, environment, transportation, public works and related appropriations bills. A graduate of the College of Charleston, Hegg majored in political science and history and is working toward a master’s degree in public administration from George Mason University.