WASHINGTON — When Madhuri Mahesh Bedre received a call in late June that her 95-year-old father had suffered a heart attack in India, she knew she had to get to his bedside as soon as possible.

But amid the coronavirus pandemic, international flights were limited and appointments were at a premium for Bedre, 56, to renew her passport at the Houston passport office near her home in Katy.

That’s when Bedre and her husband, Capt. Mahesh Bedre, 60, contacted Sen. John Cornyn’s constituent services for help.

“I called the office and told them the situation,” Mahesh Bedre said. “These guys were excellent. In an hour’s time, I got an email that they had procured an appointment tomorrow at 8 o’clock — the next day.”

Madhuri Bedre was on the next chartered flight from Houston to India, where she spent more than a month by her father’s side as he recovered. He’s doing well and turned 96 on Tuesday, Mahesh Bedre said.

“I think the mission was accomplished, and we got the passport because of Senator Cornyn,” Mahesh Bedre said.

In recognition of its efforts assisting the Bedre family and other Texans in need, Cornyn’s constituent services office was named the best in Republican office in Congress on Thursday by the Congressional Management Foundation for prioritizing “constituent service operation at the highest level.”

“Now in some circles, Texans apparently have a reputation for bragging. But I have to say, my staff are absolutely some of the best in the field when it comes to getting responses from federal agencies,” Cornyn said in a statement. “I wouldn’t be able to serve my constituents without the casework team’s tireless efforts, so this recognition is theirs as much as it is mine.”

The foundation, a nonpartisan organization dedicated to improving relations between lawmakers and their constituents, received more than 70 self-nominations from members of the House of Representatives and the Senate for the constituent services category of their annual Democracy Awards, said President and CEO Bradford Fitch. A Democrat and Republican winner is named for each category.

The awards ceremony also has categories for workplace environment, transparency and accountability, innovation and modernization and lifetime achievement. Fitch said the awards were conceived of as a way to promote competition among the members and identify best practices that are later compiled and distributed to every congressional office.

“We recognized that members of Congress are competitive beasts and the idea of competition brings out the best in them often,” Fitch said. “We recognized that this was a way to not only to get them to perform better, but also for us through our research to identify best practices in congressional operations.”

The foundation identified strategies Cornyn’s office uses to expedite cases, highlight success stories and maintain quality control. The foundation also highlighted the office’s English and Spanish website and its seven offices throughout the state to “ensure all parts of Texas is represented.”

Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Lewisville, won the Republican transparency and accountability award. The foundation noted the 106 in-person town halls he’s held in his district since entering Congress 17 years ago and frequent reports on his office’s function.

Reps. Will Hurd, R-Helotes, and Van Taylor, R-Plano, were finalists in the transparency and accountability category.

Rep. Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth, won the innovation and modernization category because the foundation said she “openly empowers staff to devise solutions and solve problems."

Published here.