Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Dr. George C. Smith, Sr., of Lineville, Alabama. Dr. Smith is a highly accomplished medical doctor and public servant, and will soon be retiring from Clay County Medical Clinics.

In 1965, Dr. Smith began his career as a medical doctor. Dr. Smith was actively involved in the Medical Association of Alabama, the American and Alabama Academies of Family Physicians, as well as other state medical committees. Dr. Smith also served on the city of Lineville City Council from 1973 to 1984, as well as president of both the Alabama Cattlemen's Association from 1985 to 1986 and the Southeastern Livestock Exposition from 1994 to 1996.

Dr. Smith has spent his career helping others, both in the field of medicine and as a public servant in Clay County. His hard work and dedication in public healthcare will certainly be missed. I congratulate Dr. Smith for his many accomplishments over the years, and wish him all the best in his retirement.

Mr. Speaker, Sergeant First Class Stephen J. White, 39, of Talladega, Alabama, died on January 5, 2006, in Iraq. Sergeant First Class White was assigned to the Third Battalion, 16th Field Artillery, Second Brigade Combat Team of the Fourth Infantry Division based in Fort Hood, Texas. According to initial reports, Sergeant White died when an improvised explosive device detonated near his convoy. His survivors include his wife and seven children.

White was a devoted husband, father, and member of the community, Mr. Speaker. Honorable service to our nation characterized his long career in the Army, which spanned 20 years and four previous tours of duty.

Words cannot express the sense of sadness we have for his family, and for the gratitude our country feels for his service. This Nation will forever hold him closely in our hearts, and remember his sacrifice and that of his family as a remembrance of his bravery and willingness to serve.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for the House's remembrance on this mournful day.

Mr. Speaker I rise today to pay special recognition to Gerald and Julia Geier, who will be celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary tomorrow, December 17, 2005. In fact, they intend to renew their vows at a celebration being held at Saks Baptist Church in my hometown of Anniston, AL.

I attend church with this fine couple. It is wonderful to see two people who still care so much about each other after all these years. Their commitment is an inspiration to everyone who knows them.

I salute Gerald and Julia Geier on their 50th anniversary and join their family in honoring them on this special occasion.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to John William Richey of Smiths Station, AL. Mr. Richey is a man of integrity and great accomplishment in the pharmaceutical field. He was chosen as the 2005 Good Neighbor Pharmacist of the Year, selected out of an astounding 4,000 applicants across the entire country.

In 1971, Mr. Richey opened Plaza Pharmacy in Smiths Station with a partner and later became the sole owner. Mr. Richey proves his commitment to his customers daily; he is often found opening the pharmacy willingly after hours for emergencies. His unparalleled generosity and good will towards human life extends beyond his business into his personal life. In 2000, he kindly donated one of his kidneys to his friend. He has four children and three grandchildren.

His business has been a landmark in Smiths Station for decades, and today Mr. Richey fills the prescriptions for grandchildren of his first customers. I am proud to acknowledge Mr. Richey in the House on this day and congratulate him on his dedication to his family, to pharmaceutical service, and to his customers.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to remember and pay tribute to the Reverend John Rowan Claypool IV, who passed September 3, 2005. He was internationally and nationally recognized as one of the most gifted spiritual leaders and teachers of our time.

Dr. Claypool was ordained to ministry in 1953 and served as Pastor of five Baptist Churches in Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas and Mississippi. He was ordained an Episcopal priest in 1986 and served as Rector of Saint Luke's Episcopal Church in Birmingham, Alabama for nearly 14 years. He retired from full time parish ministry in 2000 and, since that time, had served as the Professor of Homiletics at Mercer University's School of Theology in Atlanta, Georgia.

He has written many books education others of the things he has learned through the death of his 10 year old daughter, and the accounts of his role in the struggle for Civil Rights. Dr. Claypool was truly a model citizen and will be sorely missed. His word lives on through his wife, Ann; and their children.

Again, Mr. Speaker, I am privileged to honor and pay homage to the Reverend John R. Claypool IV in the House today and hope that we may all strive to live as he did.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and congratulate an exceptional family from my home state of Alabama. On December 4th, Mike and Denise Henry of Montgomery County, Alabama, were awarded the 2005 title of Outstanding Young Farm Family for Alabama.

Mike and Denise are exceptional young farmers I met on a recent tour of Third District farms. The family manages a preconditioning business for weaned calves, and has 600 brood cows as well as registered Angus and Charolais cattle on their farm. They also own a catering business.

As the 2005 Outstanding Young Farm Family, the Henrys will participate in many events to encourage other young people to become involved in Alabama agriculture. This is a great honor for this family, and speaks to their hard work and dedication as outstanding leaders in our community and in our state.

As a member of the Committee on Agriculture in Congress, I am privileged to honor Mike, Denise and their five children for this award today, and congratulate them for this notable accomplishment.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize today the players and coaches of the Clay County High School Varsity football team from Alabama's Third Congressional District.

On December 3rd, the Clay County Panthers won their sixth State Championship title with a 31-0 victory over Southern Choctaw in the Class 2A final. These talented young athletes won the game after beating a tough opponent. In particular I would like to give tribute to the Panther defense, who in this game helped shutout their ninth opponent of the season.

I am proud to acknowledge and congratulate the Clay County High School Varsity Football team of 2005 in the House today, and extend my most heartfelt congratulations to these talented young people for this significant accomplishment.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of this bill and in particular the provisions of this bill that help secure our border and protect our homeland.

The bill we are considering today contains many key border security provisions from H.R. 4312, the Border Security and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2005, which was passed recently out of the Homeland Security Committee by a unanimous voice vote.

I would like to note that H.R. 4312 was the first major bill reported by the committee under the chairmanship of Mr. King, and we appreciate his leadership.

Mr. Chairman, we have nothing less than a crisis situation on our borders. This past August I led a congressional delegation to our southern border with Mexico, and we saw firsthand vast areas without fences and densely populated areas where illegal aliens find their way across our border.

And I would urge you, Mr. Chairman, and our colleagues to refer to these individuals as what they are. They are illegal aliens, not the benign, friendly, undocumented worker phrase. They are illegal aliens.

I was impressed during this visit with the dedication and level of our Border Patrol agents. However, they desperately need more resources.

We also need to make sure that they have more cameras; more vehicles; and in particular, more canine assets.

Section 108 of this bill that we are considering today in particular will strengthen border security by increasing the number of canine detection teams working with our Border Patrol agents. These detection dogs are instrumental in finding concealed humans, explosives, drugs, and bulk cash.

We also need to ensure new border surveillance equipment is functional and cost efficient.

Section 109 of this bill addresses these concerns. It requires that a DHS Inspector General conduct reviews of each contract action over $20 million relating to the new Secure Border Initiative.

With thousands of new Border Patrol agents being hired, we also need to ensure they are trained as cost effectively as possible. Therefore, section 110 of this bill would instruct the GAO to evaluate and review the cost of Border Patrol training.

H.R. 4437 includes many other strong border security provisions that will improve the safety and security of this great Nation.

I commend Chairman King for his leadership on these issues, and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, it is with great honor that I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 273.

As we all know, it was 50 years ago last week that the Montgomery bus boycott had its humble beginnings in Montgomery, Alabama.

On that first day of December 1955, a quiet seamstress named Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the city

bus. In doing so, she broke the law. But that did not stop Rosa Parks from doing what she knew was right that day. She remained in her seat even as police came to arrest her.

Her quiet protest, which was nothing short of a challenge to the status quo, led to the event which started the Montgomery bus boycott.

Mr. Speaker, I am deeply honored by the House's attention to these events today, and I am pleased to have another chance to honor one of Alabama's great civil rights leader, a woman whose recent passing has caused us all to mourn.

But this resolution also helps honor those who, along with Rosa Parks, helped make the Montgomery bus boycott a success. Leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., for example, ultimately helped provide the leadership necessary for the boycott to continue.

Countless other Alabamians, as well as Americans from across the country, also came to help with this effort; and they continued with their protest until the Supreme Court ultimately ruled in their favor in 1956.

Mr. Speaker, we all have much to learn from the events of 1955 and 1956. I was in Montgomery last week and toured the parsonage where Dr. King helped coordinate many of the boycott's initiatives. It is my hope that this resolution will help pay tribute to those events. It is also my hope that this resolution will honor all those who participated in the boycott and provide our Nation another opportunity to learn from its past.

I appreciate the strong support for this resolution here in the House and thank my colleagues from Alabama in particular for their support. Rosa Parks may not be with us today to witness this resolution, but I am comforted in knowing her legacy and that all of those who helped make the boycott a success will live on for generations to come.

Mr. Speaker, I respectfully ask the House's continued support for this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the City of Sylacauga, Alabama, a unique town in the Third Congressional District that was recently named by America's Promise as one of the 100 best communities in America for young people.

As its 13,000 citizens know, Sylacauga still retains that old- fashioned charm which defines small town America. Yet it's also a forward-looking community that prides itself on its schools, and recognizes that the children of today are our leaders of tomorrow. In that regard, the city has created a variety of programs geared for children and teens, including a program known as BRIDGES. This unique initiative, which was identified by America's Promise as one of the city's crown achievements, provides school age children special opportunities to participate in recreational activities while under supervision of volunteers and staff. It also gives older children the opportunity to do volunteer work and give back to their community.

Mr. Speaker, this is indeed a proud achievement for the City of Sylacauga, and further demonstrates the importance its citizens place on educating its children. I am proud that one of East Alabama's small towns has made this prestigious list, and salute the citizens and local officials who helped make this achievement possible. I thank the House for its attention to this important matter today.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Dr. N. Rao Chava of Montgomery, Alabama. Dr. Chava is a highly accomplished medical doctor and administrator, and will soon be retiring as Director of the Central Alabama Veterans Health Care System hospital in Macon County.

In 1974, Dr. Chava began his career with the Department of Veterans Affairs as an internal medicine resident. As a naturalized United States citizen, he has devoted himself to VA Medical Centers in both West Virginia and Alabama. Dr. Chava was certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and received a Certificate for Added Qualifications in Geriatric Medicine. He is also a Fellow for the American College of Physicians and a member of the American Geriatrics Society, the American College of Physician Executives, and the American College of Healthcare Executives.

Our nation's veterans deserve the highest quality care available, and I know Dr. Chava has spent much of his career caring for their needs. He will be missed. I congratulate Dr. Chava for his many accomplishments over the years, and wish him all the best in his retirement.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to help pay tribute to one of Alabama's great Civil Rights leaders, Rosa Parks.

Nearly 50 years ago, Rosa Parks started a quiet, but determined, protest against the status quo.

What began as a principled refusal to give up her seat, grew into a movement that has helped change the world.

All of us assembled here today are beneficiaries of her courage, regardless of our race. We're deeply saddened by her passing, but we're also humbled by her life and legacy. Our Nation is stronger because of her actions.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday I introduced a resolution recognizing the 50th Anniversary of the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

Over 60 members of this chamber are co-sponsors of that resolution, including all of my colleagues from Alabama.

It is my hope that resolution will also help honor Rosa Parks, and help pay tribute to those who laid the foundations for the modern-day Civil Rights movement.

I thank Mr. Conyers for leading this tribute today, and thank my colleagues for their attention to the life and legacy of Rosa Parks.

Mr. Speaker, Sergeant First Class Brandon K. Sneed, 33, originally of Norman, Oklahoma, died on October 10, 2005, in Iraq. Sergeant First Class Sneed was assigned to B Company, 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, at Fort Benning, Georgia. According to initial reports, Sergeant First Class Sneed died when an improvised explosive device detonated near his military vehicle. His survivors include his wife, children, and parents.

Brandon Sneed was a devoted husband and father and was eager to serve his country, Mr. Speaker. Like every other soldier, he dutifully left behind his family and loved ones to serve our country overseas.

Words cannot express the sense of sadness we have for his family, and the gratitude our country feels for his service. Sergeant First Class Sneed died serving not just the United States, but the entire cause of liberty, on a noble mission to help spread the cause of freedom in Iraq and liberate an oppressed people from tyrannical rule. He was a true American.

We will forever hold him closely in our hearts, and remember his sacrifice and that of his family as a remembrance of his bravery and willingness to serve. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for the House's remembrance on this mournful day.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of myself and Congressman Bachus, we would like to extend our sincerest congratulations to the Auburn Early Education Center in Auburn, Alabama, for its receipt of the prestigious Intel Corporation and Scholastic ``School of Distinction'' Award. This school, through the hard work of its faculty and staff, has set a national standard in literacy achievement through innovation. We are proud to commend its laudable accomplishments.

The Auburn Early Education Center serves the needs of all kindergarten students enrolled in Auburn City Schools. This school, in developing its curriculum, focuses on a child-centered approach to learning. It is this focus, along with the integration of reading in all subject areas, that led Intel and Scholastic to recognize the Auburn Early Education Center from among 3,000 excellent competitors as one of twenty schools worthy of being designated as a ``School of Distinction.''

Mr. Speaker, because of the Auburn Early Education Center's success in the area literacy achievement, they will receive a grant of $10,000 and will share in a host of technological prizes designed to further improve learning opportunities at the school. It is our sincere belief that this institution will continue to serve as a guiding example to primary schools across the United States of what is possible in literacy education when faculty, staff and parents come together with the common purpose of providing the best education to students. We are honored to recognize the Auburn Early Education Center before this body and this nation for their devotion and commitment to quality education. Congratulations on your well deserved recognition as a ``School of Distinction.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Betty Gorham, who will be celebrating 50 years as a church organist on Sunday, October 2, 2005.

Betty Gorham is now the organist at First Baptist Church of Saks in Anniston, Alabama, and has been since October of 1975.

Betty Gorham began taking organ lessons at age seven in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where her family moved after her father's death in 1943. Her instruction continued until she was 16 years old, at which time she was performing at her home church, Eastdale Baptist Church. Her first full- time job as an organist was at Signal Mountain Baptist in Chattanooga in 1957, and was followed shortly by a move to Birmingham, Alabama, to play at Huffman Baptist Church. In fact, it was while playing the organ for a wedding rehearsal at this church that she met her future husband, Jim Gorham. They were married in 1958, and Betty followed her husband in several moves around the State of Alabama. They went first to Montgomery, where Betty played at Ridgecrest Baptist; then to Mobile in 1960, where she played at Westlawn Baptist; then back to Birmingham, Alabama, in 1963, where she played first at Fairfield Highlands Baptist Church and then at Center Point Baptist. Finally in 1973, the Gorhams moved to Anniston, Alabama, where she played at Parker Memorial and Heflin Baptist Church before beginning her long career at First Baptist Church of Saks.

Betty and Jim Gorham have now been married 47 years and have four grandchildren. In addition to her devotion to her family and her church and church music, Betty has found time to do charitable work in the community.

Let us all congratulate Betty Gorham on her 50 years of service as a church organist and thank her for her 30 years of service at First Baptist Church of Saks in Anniston, Alabama.