To designate the facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs located at 180 Martin Drive in Carrollton, Georgia, as the "Trinka Davis Veterans Village".

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6374, a bill to designate the Department of Veterans Affairs facility in Carrollton, Georgia, as the Trinka Davis Veterans Village.

Mr. Speaker, much of what I'm going to say has already been said by the distinguished chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Miller), as well as the ranking member, the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Brown), but I thank them for giving me the opportunity to repeat and maybe elaborate a bit because it deserves to be said.

Katherine--better then known as Trinka--Davis, was a businesswoman from Carroll County who founded the Trinka Davis Foundation back in 2004 after realizing the struggles many servicemen and -women faced upon returning from both Iraq and Afghanistan. As has been stated, though not a veteran herself, through her generosity, Ms. Davis performed an outstanding service for the veterans of northwest Georgia.

Mr. Speaker, Trinka made note of the reports of difficulties that many returning veterans and their respective families were facing: loss of limbs, traumatic brain injuries, post traumatic stress syndrome, unemployment, and loss of their homes.

Although she is no longer with us, her memory lives on. Trinka Davis left almost her entire estate, over $18 million, to this foundation, which has used it to construct a first-class health facility to aid our wounded warriors in their recovery and treatment. I've been there. I've seen it. I was there at the ribbon cutting ceremony just this past year. It's a beautiful facility in my district in Carrollton.

Mr. Speaker, with the war in Afghanistan, a recent one in Iraq, and unrest around the globe, the United States has more than 196,000 active duty servicemen and -women that put their lives on the line night and day to protect our families and our freedoms. These men and women accepted the call of duty, leaving behind their loved ones and life as they know it, to protect the lives of us and so many others.

When our soldiers return from battle, sometimes they don't get the support and the assistance that they deserve. Simply put, we owe them more. Just as they have answered the call to serve our country, we must answer the call to serve them.

This is what Trinka Davis did and why I rise today, and I am so honored to be a part of the naming of this Carrollton VA facility in her honor.

Thanks to Trinka's generosity and the tireless dedication of her foundation, the new clinic was donated to the Department of Veterans Affairs just this past August. The doors were opened for veterans to receive outpatient treatment on September 24, 2012, and in the coming months the clinic will also include a 42-bed community living center. While providing a variety of services, including primary care, physical therapy, and outpatient mental health services, the facility will serve 3,000 veterans and will allow them to receive treatment closer to their homes.

I believe that, like our veterans, Ms. Davis is, indeed, a hero. She recognized the needs of our veterans, and she worked tirelessly to meet them. The Trinka Davis Foundation ensured that Ms. Davis' commitment to the veterans and to their families in the Carrollton community and beyond would be preserved through the construction of this health facility.

I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Trinka Davis' selfless actions by supporting H.R. 6374.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6374) to designate the facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs located at 180 Martin Drive in Carrollton, Georgia, as the ``Trinka Davis Veterans Village.''

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

The legislation before us today does, in fact, name the VA community- based outpatient clinic in Carrollton, Georgia, as the Trinka Davis Veterans Village.

Trinka Davis was a Carroll County business leader who desired that her estate be used to provide support and assistance to veterans and their families. Following her death in 2008, the Trinka Davis Foundation contacted the Atlanta VA Medical Center and determined that there was a need for an outpatient clinic in Carrollton, Georgia, to better serve the 3,500 veterans in northwest Georgia. As such, the foundation worked with local VA leaders to plan, design, and construct the clinic, and in September presented the $17 million gift in kind to the VA. The 73,883 square foot clinic, which opened to veterans in September, provides primary, home-based, and mental health care and a number of specialty services, including physical and occupational therapy. It encompasses a 42-bed community living center that provides rehabilitation services and long-term care.

She was not a veteran herself, but Ms. Davis' generous gift was already improving the health and daily lives of Georgia's veterans and their families, and will no doubt continue to do so for generations to come.

It is only proper that the facility that she provided the funding for bear her name as recognition of her outstanding service to the veterans of the State of Georgia. It's received the unanimous support of the Georgia delegation, and Georgia's major veterans service organizations have all supported it. Also, I would like to note that, according to a preliminary cost estimate provided by CBO, it represents a minimal cost of less than $500,000 to the Federal Government.

This legislation is sponsored by my good friend and colleague, Dr. Phil Gingrey, and I want to thank Dr. Gingrey for his leadership in spearheading this provision and for his steadfast support of veterans, not only in the State of Georgia, but across this Nation.

I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 6374, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to now yield as much time as he may consume to the sponsor of this piece of legislation, the gentleman from Georgia, Dr. Gingrey.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 6374.

I encourage all Members to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I rise today to offer my support of H.R. 6374, a bill to name a facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs in Carrollton, Georgia, as the Trinka Davis Veterans Village.

Ms. Davis served with great distinction as a businesswoman, but one of her greatest contributions to our Nation can be seen in her commitment to the care and well-being of the servicemen and -women of our country.

As a teenager, Ms. Davis paid a visit to Pearl Harbor in Hawaii and was touched by the sacrifice of American servicemembers. Her brother, Poncet Davis, Jr., then went on to serve in the United States Army. Later, after her successful career in the textile and rubber industry, Ms. Davis continued her work helping wounded veterans and their families. In 2004, she founded the Trinka Davis Foundation to honor service veterans, particularly in the State of Georgia.

I commend the foundation and the Atlanta VA for working closely together to build this facility, which will serve as a community living center and a medical office to provide primary health care and other important services to over 3,000 veterans.

While Ms. Davis is no longer with us, her longstanding commitments to our Nation's heroes live on and make her a perfect candidate for the naming of the Veterans Village in Carrollton.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time. I urge support for H.R. 6374, and I yield back the balance of my time.

General Leave