To name the Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Gaylord, Michigan, as the "Navy Corpsman Steve Andrews Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Clinic".

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1281) to name the Department of Veterans Affairs community- based outpatient clinic in Gaylord, Michigan, as the ``Navy Corpsman Steve Andrews Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Clinic''.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to insert extraneous material on H.R. 1281.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to remember the life of Navy Corpsman Steve Andrews, who passed away on January 28, 2017. I thank my colleague, General Bergman from Michigan, for bringing this bill before us so we all can pay tribute to a lifelong public servant.

Mr. Speaker, Steve Andrews grew up in Gaylord, Michigan, and graduated from Gaylord High School. He joined the Navy during the Vietnam war in 1967 and served as a hospital corpsman at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Guam. He also served as a medic for the 1st Marine Division and Marine 1st Reconnaissance Company in Vietnam.

Mr. Speaker, Corpsman Andrews is credited with saving the lives of numerous marines during his time in Vietnam. In recognition of his exceptional service in combat, he was awarded a Purple Heart and a Navy Commendation Medal.

However, Steve Andrew's service to his community and country did not end with military service. He was elected to the 106th District in the Michigan

House of Representatives and held office from 1979 to 1982. Steve Andrews remained an active public servant for Petoskey and Emmet County, working as a friend of the court and a board member of the Petoskey Regional Chamber of Commerce and North Central College. He also coached multiple sports teams and was a constant presence in the local community.

Steve was also a steward of the arts, helping found Petoskey Art in the Park. He and his wife, Karen, owned and operated Sturgeon River Pottery for 35 years.

Corpsman Andrews' dedication to serving his community will inspire Gaylord VA Health Care Clinic staff to serve veterans, just as Steve did.

We hope that naming the Gaylord, Michigan, VA Outpatient Clinic after Corpsman Steve Andrews will honor the outstanding care that he provided his fellow soldiers.

H.R. 1281 has letters of support from The American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Affairs, the Disabled American Veterans, and the American Veterans organization.

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record those letters and a resolution in support.

Department of Michigan, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the

United States,

Lansing, Michigan, 14 June 2021.

To the Honorable Members of the House and Senate Veterans

Affairs Committees: The Veterans of Foreign Wars Department

of Michigan enthusiastically supports the naming of the

Gaylord Veteran Affairs Community Based Outpatient Clinic to

be ``Navy Corpsman Steve Andrews Department of Veterans

Affairs Health Care Clinic''.

Steve Andrews was a Navy Corpsman, whose heroic actions in

Vietnam are credited for saving countless Marine Corps lives

during combat. A Navy Commendation and Purple Heart

recipient, Andrews is originally from Gaylord and is a

graduate of Gaylord High School. Mr. Andrews was a citizen of

Gaylord, where he also served as a friend of the court,

coached multiple sports in the region, served as a board

member for the chamber of commerce, and was a State

Representative for the 106th District from 1979-1982.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars, the city of Gaylord, and this

great Nation are grateful for the selfless acts of this

individual. We hope that by naming this facility after a

Purple Heart recipient of the Vietnam War, we might begin to

show all Vietnam Veterans how much this country appreciates

their sacrifices for this Nation. No matter how long overdue.

We thank Congressman Bergman and all Members of Congress

who support this meaningful legislation.

Respectfully,

Kevin Conklin,

State Commander, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Department of

Michigan.

Derek Blumke,

State Adjutant/Quartermaster, Veterans of Foreign Wars,

Department of Michigan.

Mr. Speaker, I wholeheartedly support this bill, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

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

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 1281, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1281 to name the Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Gaylord, Michigan, as the Navy Corpsman Steve Andrews Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Clinic.

It is an honor for me to lead this legislation to designate a VA care facility in the hometown of a man who so embodied love and care for others, whether it was for a neighbor down the street, a constituent in his district, or his brothers and sisters in arms on the battlefield.

Steve Andrews led a life of service in every sense of the word, starting with the defense of our freedoms overseas. He entered the Navy in 1967 as a hospital corpsman, going on to serve in the Vietnam war-- not only at the U.S. Navy Hospital in Guam, but as a medic

in the 1st Marine Division attached to a force reconnaissance company in Vietnam. He is credited with saving the lives of countless marines during combat.

Steve earned the Navy Commendation Medal and Purple Heart for his service. I can personally attest that countless marines and new generations of Americans owe their lives to Navy corpsmen. Their service must never be forgotten, which is one of the reasons we are working to memorialize Steve Andrews with this legislation.

Steve led a dedicated, full life of public service. From 1979 to 1982, he represented Michigan's 106th District as a State representative fighting for Michiganders' best interests in Lansing. Giving back to the community in which he grew up, Steve coached local youth sports, helped found Petoskey Art in the Park, and sat on the boards of the Petoskey Regional Chamber of Commerce and North Central College.

I personally met Steve in a rocking chair in January of 2016. He was terminal with cancer at that point. He did not hesitate to reach out to someone he had never met before in his life and share his thoughts on what it meant to be a public servant. I am deeply indebted to his perspective.

His legacy is beyond deserving of the designation that we are seeking today. I thank his loving family for all their support; his friends, who initiated this legislation; the Michigan veterans service organizations backing us up; and the entirety of my Michigan delegation colleagues for coming together in a bipartisan manner to cosponsor this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1281.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1281, a bill to name the VA community-based outpatient clinic, or CBOC, in Gaylord, Michigan, the Navy Corpsman Steve Andrews VA Health Care Clinic.

This bill is cosponsored by my friend, fellow marine, and ranking member of the Subcommittee on Health, General Jack Bergman of Michigan. I thank him for his leadership.

Navy Corpsman Steve Andrews served during the Vietnam war and received both the Navy Commendation Medal and the Purple Heart. He was also an active member of the Gaylord community before and after his time in uniform. It is fitting that the VA CBOC there will carry his name.

Mr. Speaker, I wholeheartedly support this legislation. I urge all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to do the same, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Bergman).

Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged and the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 1281.

I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.