Congressman Brian Higgins joined Mayor Byron W. Brown today to unveil commemorative street trailblazing signs that are now posted on Woodside Avenue in South Buffalo where Tim Russert grew up.  The signs are located at each end of the block of Woodside Avenue where the Russert family once resided.  The intersections are Woodside Avenue and McKinley Parkway and Woodside Avenue and South Park Avenue. Since the trailblazing signs are commemorative street signs, the street’s formal name will not be changed. The signs read: “This Route is Designated Tim Russert Way.”

In a communication filed on June 19^th with the Buffalo Common Council, which approved the measure, Mayor Brown stated, “I believe it is fitting that the City of Buffalo honor the memory and legacy of one of the City’s greatest ambassadors and favorite sons.  Therefore I respectfully request that Your Honorable Body authorize the placement of trailblazing signs on Woodside Avenue in honor of Tim Russert, near the very home where he grew up in the City of Buffalo.”

At today’s unveiling ceremony, Mayor Brown also presented to the attending Russert family members, including his sister Kathy Russert Hughes and her children, Jesse and Ashley, the U.S. flag that was flown at half-staff outside City Hall in memory of Tim Russert.

“Tim Russert was loved and respected nationally because of the values he learned right here in South Buffalo – love of family, community and country,” said Congressman Brian Higgins.  “Tim was a kid from the neighborhood who never forgot his hometown and now the neighborhood where the Russert family home sits will forever be marked in Tim’s memory.”

"Tim Russert's contribution to this neighborhood, this city, and our nation is unmistakable.  The sense of loss is tremendous, only surpassed by the sense of pride in the amazing accomplishments of a guy from South Buffalo," said New York State Assemblyman Mark Schroeder.

"Tim Russert epitomized what it meant to be a Buffalonian,” said Erie County Legislator Tim Kennedy. “He took the values and lessons of his South Buffalo neighborhood and family and used those to positively influence countless people throughout the United States and the world. It is a fitting tribute to have these trail blazing signs signify where his life began and I applaud the mayor for recognizing Tim Russert's lifelong contribution to society."

Mayor Brown concluded today’s ceremony by stating, “We honor Tim Russert today for everything he ever did for the city he loved, the institutions he revered and perhaps as importantly for the Buffalo sports teams he supported so passionately.”