A fitting celebration at Abe Pollin's house

On Wednesday, the Pollin family once again made working families in Washington their focus, honoring employees at Verizon Center and more than a dozen civic and public service organizations with a free concert featuring the legendary Stevie Wonder. How typically "Pollin" it was that they again gave to all of us. We wanted, in turn, to recognize them.

Not long ago, in the mid-1990s, the District was on the brink of financial collapse. The city couldn't make payroll. Families were fleeing to the suburbs for better schools, better jobs, better quality of life. We in Congress did what we could to help the nation's capital get back on its feet.

But in large part, the rebirth of Washington can be attributed and traced to the remarkable efforts of one man: Abe Pollin. As ownership of the Washington Wizards and the Verizon Center transfers from the Pollin family to another visionary, Ted Leonsis, let's take a moment to reflect on all that Abe did for our community.

He didn't have to bring the Baltimore Bullets here, or the Capitals. He didn't have to build Verizon Center, with his own money, in the heart of downtown D.C. He didn't have to build the Linda Pollin Memorial Housing Project in Southeast Washington, employing some of the first racially integrated construction crews. He didn't have to contribute to UNICEF and dozens of local charities such as the I Have a Dream Foundation and the Boys and Girls Club, or establish the Pollin Prize, a $200,000 annual award for pediatric research.

But he did, because above all else, Abe Pollin was a builder -- of buildings, of sports franchises, of communities, of dreams. Verizon Center is "The House That Abe Built." And, for many of us, so is downtown Washington. With the Pollins' imminent sale to Leonsis, the houses that Abe built are in good hands. And that is good for the Wizards -- and all Washingtonians. Abe saw in Ted someone much like himself: a striver from an immigrant family who knows the meaning of hard work, believes in giving something back to the community, and practices a management style that is hands-on, people-oriented and fan-friendly.

Abe understood that life is a lot like sports. There's a beginning. Then there's the event itself, with all its joys and sorrows. Then there's the end. And, when it's over, the real score is not how many points you put on the board, but the love and loyalty you leave behind in the hearts and souls of your family, your friends, and all your fellow human beings whose lives you have touched.

We are sure Abe Pollin was smiling on Wednesday. He always liked to say he was a "nutty optimist," and we think he would be quite optimistic about the Wizards' upcoming season after the team landed the first pick in the 2010 NBA draft. And he would have loved the free concert. We can think of no better way for the Pollins to end their ownership of Washington Sports and Entertainment -- in quintessential "Abe Pollin" fashion, a final reflection of his commitment to the people of this community. And we know that we speak for not only ourselves but tens of thousands of Wizards fans and area residents when we thank the Pollin family for all they have done for the nation's capital.

Steny Hoyer, a Democrat, is majority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives and represents Maryland's 5th Congressional District. Tom Davis, a Republican, represented Virginia's 11th Congressional District from 1995 to 2008.