Floor Statements

Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, the Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization Program was created by Hal Rogers a few years ago. It has already borne promising fruit, delivering environmental cleanup and much-needed economic development to some of the poorest parts of our country, the Appalachian coalfields.

In one AMLER Program in my district, we used it to take down highwalls at an old mine, and the area was redeveloped into an industrial site.

Likewise, in another place, a public-private partnership--and keep in mind, that means there is a lot of private money. Sometimes counties put money in. It is not just AMLER money, but AMLER money is a big help.

In that case, the public-private partnership came in and cleaned up an old coal fines pond. It saved the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement one-third of the estimated cleanup costs, and it was done decades earlier than expected.

However, the specter of OSMRE imposing a perpetual Federal interest in every AMLER project is hurting what I believe is a great program.

A letter from the region sums it up best. ``Dear Senator Warner: The purpose of this correspondence is to solicit your support and assistance in challenges associated with the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement.''

This is from the Lonesome Pine Regional Industrial Facilities Authority. It is a regional economic development authority established in 2019 whose membership is composed of the Counties of Dickenson, Lee, Scott, and Wise, and the city of Norton, which are in far southwest Virginia.

``The authority member localities work collaboratively as a region to create employment opportunities for its citizens, and its mission is straightforward: `to cooperatively develop and enhance regional economic opportunities for member localities.' The relevant issue revolves around the terms required to be placed in deeds for real estate acquired and improved through program funds. Current required language mandates that portions of the Code of Federal Regulations . . . applies to all projects. In short, 2 CFR, part 200, provides for what is defined as a `Federal interest' in any real estate, equipment, or personal property in which AMLER funds are expended. This Federal interest would be memorialized in any real estate by a recorded instrument in respective county circuit court offices.

``The existence of a `Federal interest' results in OSMRE having to approve any conveyances or transfers of interest concerning real estate in which AMLER funds are expended. OSMRE could further seek recoupment of all AMLER funds invested in the property being considered for transfer. No time limit is given for this `Federal interest,' and as of the date of this letter,'' which was May of this year, ``the Federal interest would be perpetual in nature. As you can imagine, these regulations will severely impact the region's ability to use property as an incentive for economic development prospects. It is uncertain under these regulations if OSMRE would consider approving any conveyance for real estate to a private developer. In addition, localities would be prohibited to pledge any real estate with a `Federal interest' as collateral'' to try to make the development work.

``The review and consideration of these issues also contribute to a much-extended time period within the approval process. In the arena of economic development, time is one of the most important factors in making deals and attracting prospects to'' this Appalachian region.

``The accumulative impacts of these regulations are causing localities to deter from pursuing AMLER program funds as a source for economic development'' in the region.

Now, that was the whole point of the program, to take abandoned mine land areas, improve the mine area, and make it available for new economic development in one of the poorest regions of the country, Mr. Chairman.

This amendment is needed, at least for this year. I may have to put in a bill later to make it permanent or long term, but at least for this year, make it clear that if a county or a local government puts money into a project, they don't have to worry about the Federal Government having what is, in essence, a revisionary clause that if it is ever used for some purposes they don't agree to, somewhere down in the future, the property comes back to the Federal Government.

We can't use this program the way it was intended if we don't solve this problem. My amendment solves this problem in the short term. We can work to get additional language to make it better in the future, but right now, we need to do this.

Mr. Chair, I urge everyone to vote in favor of it, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I offer these remarks in honor of James ``Randy'' Smith, who passed away on March 12th, at the age of 79. Mr. Smith dedicated his life to public service and the well-being of Virginians.

Mr. Smith was born in Martinsville, Virginia on March 7, 1945. He graduated from Martinsville High School.

His interest in further education led him to Randolph-Macon College and the University of Virginia's School of Law. Upon graduation from the University of Virginia, Mr. Smith began a legal career in Martinsville City's Commonwealth's Attorney office. He served as Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney before being elected as Martinsville's Commonwealth's Attorney, through which he served many terms. His masterful development as a legal mind earned him praise from his community, who often referred to him as a walking codebook.

His outstanding service to the Commonwealth would continue under the administration of Governor Jim Gilmore, where Mr. Smith was appointed to work for Virginia's Department of Rail and Public Transportation, as well as the State's Charitable Gaming Commission.

Mr. Smith's love for his community did not wane. He returned to the Martinsville area, working as an Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney for Henry County for over a decade. Despite retiring in 2015, he still served in an Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney's capacity when needed in Martinsville City, Henry County and Patrick County.

Mr. Smith was a man of profound faith who valued his lifelong membership in the Broad Street Christian Church. He also was a member of the Martinsville Rotary Club.

He is survived by his cousins, Dr. John R. Smith, Jane Clark Moorman and J. Hubert Smith, Jr.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Harold Slemp, who passed away on April 20th, at the age of 89.

Mr. Slemp was born in Sugar Grove, Virginia on October 10, 1934. He mostly grew up in Marion, Virginia.

In 1957, Mr. Slemp graduated with a bachelor's degree in Agricultural Economics from Virginia Tech.

The insurance industry welcomed Mr. Slemp's hard work and dedication. He began a business career with Allstate Insurance in Roanoke, Virginia before returning to Marion, where he started as an insurance agent and later became president of Giles and Miles Insurance company. His run as president and a leading insurance voice would last forty years.

As a successful insurance agent, his customers and colleagues appreciated his work and recognized him. The Independent Insurance Agents of Virginia offered Mr. Slemp to serve one term as chairman of their association. He was awarded the ``Golden Eagle'' for his outstanding contributions to the insurance industry, and named agent of the year.

The well-being of others was of particular interest to Mr. Slemp. He served a term on Smyth County's Board of Supervisors, served as president of the Marion Lions Club, chairman of the Smyth County Chamber of Commerce. Also, Governor George Allen appointed Mr. Slemp to the Charitable Gaming Commission, which included a two-year stint as chairman. His charity and service to his community were well- documented.

Mr. Slemp cared much for serving his country. While at Virginia Tech, he served in the university's Corps of Cadets program. In 2007, he was inducted into the ``Old Guard'' of the Corps of Cadets.

He is survived by his sons, Christopher Slemp (Heidi) of Marion, VA, David Robinson-Slemp of Washington D.C.; daughter, Amy Slemp (Toby) of Gothenburg, Sweden; his ``little sister,'' Mavis Williams (Roger) of Marion, VA; brother, Scottie Slemp (Robin) of Cartersville, GA; sister, Patty Slemp Mauney of Decatur, GA; sisters-in-law, Thelma Mathena (Don) and Nancy Robinson; grandchildren, Thomas, Jacob, Noah, Emma, Austin, Autumn, Alex and Ashlynn; several accomplished nieces, nephews and cousins; god-children, Andrea Boone and Jenny Boone; and numerous friends.

Smyth County has produced some of the finest human beings I have ever met, Mr. Slemp being one of them. He had profound impacts on his loved ones as a husband, father and family member, and his community as an insurance agent, public official and friend.

I had the honor of knowing Mr. Slemp for many years. When I was younger, Mr. Slemp and his wife would take my mother, sister and me out to lunch at Bailey's cafeteria. This treat was a gesture I remember fondly. He was very good to my family when there was nothing to gain, except the knowledge that he was doing something nice.

As a student at Emory & Henry College, he offered to assist me in any way. He was a leading Republican figure for years and served as Chairman of the Smyth County Republican Committee. He was a big supporter of mine in politics and a good friend. He will be missed by many.

Objection.

To ask that the words be stricken.

Mr. Speaker, at what point will the United States House of Representatives stand up and say we aren't going to take it from the executive branch anymore?

I say to my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, this is not about Democrats versus Republicans; this is about Congress versus the executive branch.

If the executive branch had a problem with the subpoena, they should not have filed a motion to quash. They should have taken it to the third branch of government and made sure that the subpoena was proper.

They didn't do that. They decided to be executive across the board to dictate to this House, elected by the people, what the terms were going to be. I won't stand for it anymore. It is time we used our inherent contempt and hold the Attorney General in contempt of Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I have heard this motion called a political stunt. Let me assure my colleagues, Mr. Speaker, this is no political stunt. Congress must use its inherent authority when it deems it proper. This is a proper use of that.

I would say to the gentleman, my feelings on this have nothing to do with the current situation politically. I advocated to then-Speaker John Boehner that we use this measure on Eric Holder if he chose to come to the floor of the House for a State of the Union Address after having been found in contempt.

It may very well be, Mr. Speaker, that on the general contempt, the criminal contempt, the Department of Justice headed by Merrick Garland can use prosecutorial discretion, which they did, which is also why it is inherent on Congress to use its inherent contempt power because if we only can rely on the Attorney General to hold himself or charge himself with contempt, Congress no longer has the power to subpoena, Congress no longer has the power to do its oversight, to do its investigations into any part of the Federal Government, and we will be taking away all of the power. We will be emasculating the United States Congress.

It is not appropriate. We should have used this power 10 years ago. We should have used this power 8 years ago. Now, we must restore the ability of the United States Congress to get its subpoenas answered from the executive branch of this country.

If there is a problem, Mr. Speaker, if the executive branch thinks we have overreached, if the executive branch thinks we have done something wrong, we have a third branch to make a decision on that, but the first step is for us to recognize and defend our constitutional prerogatives to do our job and to defend the United States Congress with inherent contempt against the executive branch.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Eddie Elswick, who passed away on March 18th, at the age of 83.

Mr. Elswick was born on January 30, 1941, in Pike County, Kentucky. He was one of the first in his family to attend college, studying industrial arts at Berea College, before attending Ball State University, where he received his master's degree in education.

Mr. Elswick enjoyed a lengthy career with General Electric as a financial executive. He served as financial manager at several General Electric locations, and also negotiated government contracts. In 1980, his job brought his family to the Roanoke Valley.

He took his financial experience with him to public office. As a member of the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors representing the Windsor Hills District, Mr. Elswick worked to review County contracts and examine local government expenses. He took pride in advocating for the County's rural areas like Catawba and Bent Mountain. He also championed securing funding for Glenvar Public Library.

Mr. Elswick's passions included bluegrass music, Corvettes, and the mountains. He served in the national guard, where he earned recognition as a sharpshooter. He was known to tinker with several cars and hunt for deer and bear.

Mr. Elswick is survived by his daughters, Jill Elswick and Wendy Huffine; son-in-law, David Huffine; and brother Fred Elswick.

I had the pleasure of knowing Mr. Elswick over the years. He cared deeply for Roanoke County.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Coach Doug Blevins, who passed away on March 9th, at the age of 60.

Coach Blevins was born with cerebral palsy. While his condition confined him to a wheelchair for his life, he was not deterred in pursuing a career in the sport of football.

As a student at Abingdon High School, Mr. Blevins served as a student assistant coach, specializing in the kicking game. He would continue his education at Virginia Highlands Community College, University of Tennessee, and Emory & Henry University seeking more student coaching opportunities. Coach Blevins would stay close to home, starting his own consulting firm and assisting prospective kicking talents at summer camps, clinics and more.

In 1994, Coach Blevins was hired to be a consultant for the New York Jets. He would go on to coach for several years in the National Football League, working for the Miami Dolphins and NFL Hall of Fame Coach Jimmy Johnson, New England Patriots and Minnesota Vikings. From 1995 to 2000, he served as kicking coordinator for the NFL Europe League. He earned the remarkable achievement of becoming the NFL's first-ever disabled coach.

Mr. Blevins' success as a coach caught the attention of many talented kickers dreaming of playing in the NFL. Modern-day kicking legends, Adam Vinatieri and Justin Tucker, are just two of 26 current and former NFL kickers and punters who were trained and mentored by Coach Blevins.

Coach Blevins' years of hard work and tutoring prompted a significant recognition from the NFL community: his nomination to the NFL Pro Football Hall of Fame. Perhaps, someday he will be inducted.

Most recently, he served as the kicking specialist at East Tennessee State University (ETSU), his alma mater, and as a volunteer assistant on the football staff at Science Hill High School.

Coach Blevins' inspirational journey from Southwest Virginia to the NFL, and his contributions to the sport of football, will not be forgotten--along with his kindness and compassion for others. Despite his lifelong disability, Coach Blevins followed his dreams of coaching football and helped scores of young football players develop and succeed in the sport. May his legacy live on.

Mr. Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 341 and YEA on Roll Call No. 343.

Mr. Speaker, on Roll Call No. 258, I mistakenly voted NO when I intended to vote YES. It is a general principle of mine to vote NO if I do not know the full extent of the amendment. I did not have the complete information on the amendment while on the floor at the time of the vote. Since then, I have gathered more information and based on that information I would have voted in support of the amendment.

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for having this particular hour so that we can show our appreciation for D-Day and the veterans who were there.

For all who are not going to Normandy on this particular D-Day, I would invite you to Bedford, Virginia, where the National D-Day Memorial is holding their ceremony this Thursday, June 6, at 11 a.m.

Why, you might ask, would there be a memorial in Bedford, Virginia? The answer is because of the Bedford Boys of Company A, 116th Regiment, 29th Division. Per capita, Bedford lost more men on D-Day than any other community in the Nation.

As a result of this, a number of people got together in the 1990s. Bob Slaughter from Roanoke, who was a part of Company A and was there on D-Day, was a major force in starting the push for this National D- Day Memorial in Bedford.

Lucille Hoback Boggess lost two brothers that day. She contributed a lot of time, and her children are continuing the tradition of moving to make sure that people remember D-Day and the sacrifices of Bedford.

Virginia Delegate Lacey Putney, the gentleman from Bedford, also was instrumental in making sure that the funds were available to get this project off the ground.

It was such a success that on June 6, 2001, at the opening of the National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia, President George W. Bush participated and gave the keynote.

Today I read a letter not from one of the soldiers but from one of the wives of the Bedford Boys.

Ms. Ivy Lynn Schenk wrote this touching letter to her husband, John. It is a reminder of how life went for folks on the home front, where daily chores and family visits continued unabated despite the epic global conflict that raged around husbands, sons, and brothers overseas. Her letter:

Darling, it is 11:30 Sunday night. This has been a day of

continual activity. Breakfast, church, to get milk and

butter, dinner, packed the car to go to Mother Schenk's

tomorrow. Washed the dog, dusted the beans, et cetera, in the

garden to keep the bugs from ruining them.

We intended gathering a little pile of corn to take out to

Mother S. When we got at it, realized that there were too

many ears just ready to use. So we gathered them, and now I

am waiting for the pressure to go down in the cooker so I can

take out my few pints of lovely, tender corn. I still have

too many ears to take to Mother S.

Mom and I just wondered what you would say if you could see

us canning at 11:00 at night on Sunday. She says if the corn

doesn't keep it will be because we canned it on a Sunday. I

told her you were busy fighting on Sunday without even a

chance to eat or rest.

God grant that it will not be long until you can be done

with all that and come home to enjoy a few months of peace

and calm. All my love is yours, Lynn.

John Schenk never received his wife's letter. Ivy Lynn wrote it on Sunday, July 16, 1944, intending to mail it the next day, but on that Monday, she received the telegram informing her that her husband had been killed on Omaha Beach on D-Day, June 6.

Bedford lost a total of 20 that day, 19 were from Company A. What happened on July 16 is still remembered in Bedford. The telegrams were received at Green's Drug Store. Elizabeth Teass came in to report she was the operator at 8:30 that morning when the notices started coming in. Somebody from Bedford had died. They would receive nine of those notices on that one day alone. The notices kept coming in to Green's Drug Store Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.

Today, we get used to having instant communications, but back then, for the men who died on June 6, families didn't find out for more than a month that they had lost their loved ones.

Today, Bedford's Green's Drug Store is the Bedford Boys Tribute Center. The people of Bedford will never forget. I was very glad to have known a number of these soldiers before they passed away, those who survived, and to have known Ms. Boggess when she was campaigning with the Virginia legislature to make sure the National D-Day Memorial became a reality. It is a wonderful, wonderful tribute. I encourage you all to visit.

God bless you and may God continue to bless the United States of America.

Mr. Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 219, H.R. 5863.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition of Kelly Lungren McCollum, my Chief of Staff since my election to Congress in 2010. Kelly is retiring from Capitol Hill today, having served several Members of Congress for more than twenty-five years.

The daughter of former U.S. Congressman Dan Lungren, Kelly was born in Long Beach, California. Upon her father's first election to Congress, her family moved to the Washington, DC area in 1979. Raised in Vienna, Virginia, Kelly attended Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic School.

Kelly graduated from high school in three years and started at Santa Clara University. Shortly thereafter, Kelly began a career in August of 1994 as a Congressional staffer for then-U.S. Representative James Inhofe, who at that time was running for Oklahoma's open U.S. Senate seat. During Kelly's time in Congress, she held every position in my district and D.C. offices, other than Legislative Director.

After her service to the Sooner State, Kelly returned to Capitol Hill and entered a new chapter of her professional life, serving as Chief of Staff to U.S. Congressman Jeff Fortenberry. Around the same time, she would meet her loving husband, Jason, whom she has been married to for nearly eighteen years.

Kelly would continue in Congress, dedicating a period of time to the legislative team of U.S. Representative Louie Gohmert before the beginning of a thirteen-and-a-half-year career as my Chief of Staff.

As my Chief of Staff, Kelly will be best remembered as a true professional, a dedicated servant to the people of Virginia's Ninth District, and a source of responsible leadership for my staff, colleagues, and family. More importantly, she has been a great friend.

Congratulations to Kelly on her remarkable career. Her institutional knowledge, loyalty and leadership are qualities that will be missed by my office and many others. I wish her nothing more than the absolute best.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Nathaniel ``Ray'' Tuck, Jr., who passed away at the age of 52 on February 11, 2024, after battling cancer for the past 2\1/2\ years.

Ray was born in Roanoke, Virginia, on April 30, 1971, to Nathaniel Ray and Barbara Z. Tuck. He later graduated from Radford University and earned a doctorate of Chiropractic from the National University of Health Sciences in 1997.

After graduating, Ray joined his father's chiropractic clinic in southwest Virginia, where they practiced together for many years. His son, Nathaniel R. Tuck, III is currently in chiropractic school, hoping to continue the family legacy.

During Ray's incredible career, he served as the president of the Virginia Chiropractic Association, chairman of the board and later president of the American Chiropractic Association, and he was also appointed to be the chiropractor on the Virginia Board of Medicine.

Ray is survived by his wife, Bonnie, of 29 years; his daughter, Abi Dolgos and her husband, Dakota Dolgos; grandson, Gatlin Dolgos; his son, Nathaniel; his son's girlfriend, Abby E. Markham; his mother, Barbara; his sister, Amelia Martin and her husband, Buddy Martin; his brother, Ben M. Tuck and his wife, Priyam Chipper.

I wish them peace and strength during this difficult time.

I was lucky to know Ray personally, as my daughter, Abby, has dated his son, Nathaniel, for a number of years. Nathaniel and Abby met when they were both pages in the Virginia House of Delegates. I have to tell you, we were sharing carpooling duty, and all the kids said Ray was the cool one, and somehow I was not. I found this shocking, but it is true.

Ray was quite a great guy, and I was glad to have the opportunity to know him. He was a good man, and we will all greatly miss him.

Recognizing Kelly Lungren McCollum

Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition of Kelly Lungren McCollum, my chief of staff since my election to Congress in 2010. Kelly is retiring from Capitol Hill today, having served several Members in Congress for more than 25 years. She joins us here on the floor.

She is the daughter of former Congressman Dan Lungren. Kelly was born in Long Beach, California. Upon her father's first election to Congress, her family moved to the Washington, D.C., area in 1979. As you can see from the picture, she was a very young member of the Reagan Revolution.

Raised in Vienna, Virginia, Kelly attended our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic School. She graduated from high school in 3 years and started at Santa Clara University. Shortly thereafter, Kelly began a career, in August of 1994, as a congressional staffer for then United States Representative James Inhofe, who at that time was running for Oklahoma's open U.S. Senate seat.

After her service to the Sooner State, Kelly returned to Capitol Hill and entered a new chapter of her professional life, serving as chief of staff to U.S. Congressman Jeff Fortenberry.

Around the same time, she would meet her loving husband, Jason, whom she has been married to for nearly 18 years. This is a picture of Kelly and I, not Jason and Kelly, earlier this month at the Capitol.

Kelly would continue in Congress, dedicating a period of time to the legislative team of U.S. Representative Louie Gohmert before the beginning of a 13\1/2\ year career as my chief of staff.

As my chief, she will best be remembered as a true professional, a dedicated servant to the people of Virginia's Ninth District, and a source of responsible leadership for my staff, colleagues, and family.

I have to tell you, my wife made it a whole lot easier for her because they tell jokes about me back and forth all the time. I also will tell you of one fateful day when it had been kind of a hard day. I am changing the spelling to protect the innocent. People who know me know that I am not that great of an administrator. I love legislating, I love serving the people, but administrating and running an office is not my thing. She had a hard day, and she said: I hope they won't think I am a witch, to which I smiled and responded: Kelly, I hired you to be the witch. You have got to run this place, and I greatly appreciate it.

Most importantly, she has been a great friend. I congratulate Kelly on her remarkable career. Her institutional knowledge, loyalty, and leadership are qualities that will be missed in my office and many others. I wish her nothing more than the best.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition of Chief Deputy to the Smyth County Commissioner of the Revenue, Rebecca ``Becky'' Kress. Ms. Kress is set to retire in May, having served in the Smyth County Commissioner's office since 1990.

Beginning as a deputy, Ms. Kress started her thirty-four-year career in the office with great determination. She worked several years managing taxpayer assistance, assessing taxes and reviewing business and personal property.

Ms. Kress exhibited strong character and excellence in her role. She exercised great command of her responsibilities and dedication to Smyth County. These attributes prompted her rise within the office. In 2008, she became Chief Deputy for the Smyth County Commissioner of the Revenue.

She has received honors for her work, garnering the esteemed title of Master Deputy Commissioner of the Revenue. Under her leadership, many Deputies have enjoyed enrollment in the Master Deputy program.

Ms. Kress is credited with passing on a wealth of institutional knowledge and ensuring seamless operations, as she served three different Commissioners. She has given her colleagues invaluable insight and wisdom on tax issues. Her contributions to Smyth County include delivering fair and precise assessments to its citizens. Ms. Kress is a model of outstanding service to her community.

Congratulations to Ms. Kress on a job well done. I know that her colleagues and the residents of Smyth County will greatly miss her efforts in her role as Chief Deputy to Commissioner of the Revenue, but recognize that she deserves to enjoy retirement with her husband, Don, along with her loved ones and friends.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Mayor David Helms, who passed away on March 20th, at the age of 83.

Mayor Helms was born on October 11, 1940, in Glade Spring, Virginia. Upon his graduation from Glade Spring High School, he studied elementary education at Emory & Henry College. Later, he received his master's degree in education from Radford University.

His first education jobs included teaching stints at Meadowview Elementary School and Glade Spring Elementary School. Later, Mr. Helms served as Assistant Principal and Principal of Marion Primary School. He served in his role as Principal until his retirement from education in 2000.

From 1990-2000, Mr. Helms served on the Marion Town Council. He became Marion's Mayor in 2000. In public office, Mayor Helms pursued projects to revitalize downtown Marion and improve his community.

Mayor Helms was a fierce advocate in recognizing veterans for their contributions and sacrifices. He worked closely with the Marion VFW chapter and the East Tennessee Chapter of Rolling Thunder. Mayor Helms also played an instrumental role in promoting Marion's Memorial Day activities. Marion's Memorial Day parade is one of the most patriotic festivities in the Ninth District of Virginia. I have loved being in the parade with Mayor Helms. It receives widespread praise across the Commonwealth and the region every year.

Also, Mayor Helms was an active member of the Glade Spring Volunteer Fire Department. He admitted that firefighting and rescue services were in his blood.

Mayor Helms is survived by his wife Sue Winsett Helms; brother-in- law, Clyde Hoots; many cousins, nieces, nephews, and their families.

I had the pleasure of working with Mayor Helms over the years. His love for Marion and Smyth County was evident. As a public-school teacher, principal, and town council member, Mayor Helms exhibited some of the finest qualities of a public servant.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Nathaniel ``Ray'' Tuck, Jr., who passed away at the age of 52 on February 11, 2024, after battling cancer for the past two and a half years.

Ray was born in Roanoke, Virginia, on April 30, 1971, to Nathaniel Ray and Barbara Z. Tuck. He later graduated from Radford University in 1994 and earned his Doctor of Chiropractic from the National University of Health Sciences in 1997. After graduating, he joined his father's chiropractic clinic in Southwest Virginia where they practiced together for many years. His son, Nathaniel R. Tuck, III is currently in chiropractic school, hoping to continue the family legacy.

During Ray's incredible career, he served as the President of the Virginia Chiropractic Association, Chairman of the Board, and later President of the American Chiropractic Association, and was also appointed to be the chiropractor on the Virginia Board of Medicine.

Ray is survived by his wife, Bonnie, of 29 years, his daughter Abi Dolgos (husband Dakota Dolgos and grandson Gatlin Dolgos), his son Nathaniel (girlfriend Abby E. Markham), his mother Barbara, his sister Amelia Martin (husband Buddy Martin), and his brother Ben M. Tuck (wife Priyam Chipper). I wish them peace and strength during this difficult time.

I was lucky to know Ray personally, as my daughter, Abby, has dated his son Nathaniel for a number of years. He was a good man, and I was glad to have been able to know him before he passed. We will all greatly miss him.