Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, today I recognize Chief Joseph Daly of the Springfield Township Police Department in Delaware County, PA. Chief Daly has honorably served his country and the public his entire adult life. He is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, served two tours of duty in Vietnam, and then began a forty-plus year law enforcement career. In 2009, Chief Daly became Springfield Township's Chief of Police following his stint as Chief of Police for Lower Merion Township.

The Delaware County Chamber of Commerce has rightly honored Chief Daly with their Hometown Hero award. He works tirelessly to ensure the safety of Delaware County residents and has earned the respect of his colleagues and the public they serve. Under his leadership the Springfield Police Department received accreditation by the Pennsylvania Chiefs' of Police Association, a first for a Delaware County police department.

I commend Chief Daly for his passion and dedication to law enforcement in our community and I join the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce in calling him a Hometown Hero.

Mr. Speaker, today I recognize the Upper Merion Senior Service Center of King of Prussia, PA for its twentieth anniversary. Caring for our senior citizens is a challenging yet immensely rewarding experience to which those at UMSSC have dedicated their lives.

The Center enables seniors in the Seventh District to live life to the fullest. They facilitate activities that allow seniors to engage in physical, educational, and recreational activities. This social environment and steadfast care helps seniors enjoy theft retirement and stay healthy.

I hope UMSSC continues to provide their services for many years to come. The senior citizens of our district deserve the best care we can provide and UMSSC is a treasured place that does just that.

I congratulate UMSSC for their twenty years of service to our community and I wish them well in their efforts to provide top quality care for Philadelphia area seniors.

Mr. Speaker, today I recognize Consul General of Ireland Barbara Jones. Barbara has a long history of service to the Irish people. Her career as an Irish diplomat began in 1983 after receiving a graduate degree in education from University College, Dublin as well as a graduate degree in computer science from the National Institute of Higher Education at the University of Limerick.

Her posting as Consul General for the New York Consulate of Ireland concludes this month after three years of promoting Irish-American relations. I also thank the Irish Immigration Center of Philadelphia for working closely with Barbara during her tenure to ensure a positive and productive relationship between Ireland and the Philadelphia region.

Irish-American relations have never been stronger. This bond is due in no small part to Barbara's tireless efforts to foster meaningful connections between U.S. localities and Ireland. I hope she leaves the United States with fond memories, as I know she leaves her many friends and colleagues with their own fond memories of Barbara. I wish her well as she returns home and moves on to her next venture.

Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall No. 353.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 125th Anniversary of the founding of Marcus Hook Borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and to honor the contributions of generations of Marcus Hook residents to our nation's development and prosperity.

Marcus Hook was founded during the boom years of the late 1800's, and its growth has been inextricably linked with the importance of the Delaware River to the commerce of America's east coast. Its key location and access to modern infrastructure made Marcus Hook a natural location for refining and for more than 100 years the industry has been the economic bedrock of the community.

Just a few years ago, the refining industry and the family- sustaining jobs it supports were at risk. Within a few short months, the operators of the refineries along the Delaware River announced their impending closure. But Marcus Hook didn't give up. Thanks to its legacy of excellence, the skills of its workforce and the grit of its residents, the community came together. Today, the refining sector is being revitalized, and another generation of Marcus Hook families benefits from the jobs it supports.

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate Marcus Hook, its leaders and its residents for 125 years as a family-friendly, close-knit community and I thank the families of Marcus Hook for the honor of representing them in the House of Representatives.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a long-time member of my team here in my Washington, D.C. office. Today marks Jim Gray's last day with our office, after years of service that began when he was just an intern in my first term. Jim returned to my office as a staff assistant even before he had graduated from the University of Maryland, and balanced the demands of life on Capitol Hill against the completion of his academic course of study. Jim has always brought to my team a commitment to service and a relentless desire to get the job done.

Jim rose through the ranks to become one of my most trusted policy advisors, handling a broad policy portfolio including trade, defense and foreign affairs. He'll soon be departing Washington for sunny South Carolina, and I wish him the best. I know his parents, James Donald Gray Jr. and Teresa, and his sister Lindsay, are proud of him.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. Arthur Smith of Chester County, Pennsylvania for his 48 years of service to our community. Dr. Smith will be retiring at the end of this year after an astounding 48 years of service to the Ridley, Delaware County School District.

Dr. Smith has for decades been a fixture in Ridley's schools, serving in both teaching and administrative capacities. It's not uncommon today for Ridley Middle School's ``Parents Night'' to be packed with parents of current students who themselves had taken classes taught by Dr. Smith years or decades ago.

Dr. Smith brought to his teaching an unmatched commitment to his students and an unwavering desire to see them succeed. But his day as an educator didn't end with the final bell each afternoon. He then drove to West Chester University, where for years he's taught evening classes. His typical days began before 5 a.m. and ended after he got home at 10:30 that night.

Forty-eight years, 9,227 middle school students, 6,700 college students and countless hours spent helping each of them succeed--that's Dr. Smith's legacy. On behalf of our entire community, I thank him for his service and wish him the best in his retirement.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Saint Laurence Parish in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania as it celebrates its 100th anniversary on June 10, 2017.

In 1917, Reverend Maurice C. Cowl became the first pastor of the Saint Laurence Parish. As Delaware County grew, the parish school opened its doors in 1919 and soon served many families.

The Saint Laurence School is still an award-winning institution in the community, committed to academic excellence. The parish school seeks to integrate Catholic values of service and respect. With the dedication and devotion of nearly ten pastors in the last hundred years, the Saint Laurence Parish is proud to serve nearly two thousand registered households in the Upper Darby and Havertown areas today.

Mr. Speaker, we are grateful for the work of the Saint Laurence Parish, its parishioners, and Reverend Sean F. O'Neill and I hope the church will continue to grow and thrive.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Substitooth Fairy in Delaware County, Pennsylvania for earning a Chester and Delaware County SCORE 2017 Small Business Award.

SCORE is a non-profit organization that helps small businesses by providing them with mentorship and educational workshops. The small businesses that earn the SCORE Small Business Award ``have demonstrated unique vision, innovation and achievement in support of America's economy and small business community.''

Substitooth Fairy deserves this designation. When dental practices are short-staffed, they provide them with supplementary dental professionals. This allows those practices to maintain an efficient office, keep patients happy, and also creates new employment opportunities for dental professionals.

I congratulate Substitooth Fairy on their award. I am proud to serve them and the other small businesses in Pennsylvania's 7th District.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Elite Pureed Meals of Broomall, Pennsylvania for earning a Chester and Delaware County SCORE 2017 Small Business Award.

SCORE is a non-profit organization that helps small businesses by providing them with mentorship and educational workshops. Small businesses that earn a SCORE award ``have demonstrated unique vision, innovation and achievement in support of America's economy and small business community.''

Elite Pureed Meals deserves this designation. Colleen McCloskey was inspired to create Elite Pureed Meals while she operated an in-home care service. She witnessed a client lose a dangerous amount of weight due to swallowing difficulties and the unappealing food prepared for someone with that symptom. Colleen knew how important it was for him to have access to nutritious and appealing meals. She dedicated her small business to securing that access. Elite Pureed Meals prepares and delivers frozen pureed meals to those with swallowing disorders, helping them maintain a balanced diet and stay healthy.

I congratulate Elite Pureed Meals on their award. I am proud to serve them and the other small businesses in Pennsylvania's 7th District.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to thank and pay tribute to a long-time member of my team. Colleen Clare Gallagher first joined my team during my first campaign for Congress, back in 2010. She was an intern then, but she quickly proved her value and is today our Director of Operations, critically important to every aspect of our office's operations and our team's success. Colleen grew up in the 7th District. Her parents had seven daughters and raised them all in Havertown, Delaware County.

More important than her professional talent and ability, to me and my entire team she's become a valued and trusted friend, colleague, and leader.

Mr. Speaker, in the coming weeks Colleen will be departing my office to embark upon a new chapter in her life. I wish her continued happiness and success for the future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of one of the most effective tools against the opioid crisis--drug and veteran treatment courts.

The opioid crisis is the worst drug epidemic our country has ever experienced. Around two and a half million people are now addicted to opioids, and 91 of them die from overdoses each day.

Drug and veteran courts are proven approaches in this fight. Instead of incarcerating those with drug addiction and mental illness, these courts provide treatment based accountability. This strategy has saved over one and a half million lives, billions in taxpayer dollars, and has proven one of the most effective means to reduce recidivism and drug use.

May is National Drug Court Month, so there is no better time for my colleagues to stand and join me in support of drug and veteran courts in the Fiscal Year 2018 appropriations process. Thank you.

Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I want to express my admiration and deep appreciation for the gentlewoman from Indiana for her leadership on this most important bill.

This gives us a chance to do something, which is to give a voice to those victims who have suffered in silence and yet had the courage to come forward and allow others to appreciate the depth of the impact that they have suffered, as well as an opportunity for us to assure that this kind of pattern doesn't repeat itself again.

We know it is a pattern because we have, as has been aptly demonstrated by the speakers before me, stories of young women who have been victimized because they enter a trusting relationship--one between a coach and a person in which that power dynamic is so unique, the young person putting their future in the hands--which is exploited by that person superior in the relationship.

So we now have chance to assure that that trust is not further impacted. But it is not just that relationship; it is the long-term implications of it which are so damaging.

Working with the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape, we have come to appreciate victims and how the psychological impacts, including things like substance abuse and other kinds of psychological disorders, last for years, and by the courage of coming forward, it does not necessarily end that impact on them.

In fact, it is not just situations like coach and athlete. All kinds of trusting relationships can create a dynamic--one including something that I am currently working on, massage parlors--in which individuals who put themselves in a compromising position find themselves assaulted.

Most recently, I introduced the Duty to Report Act, addressing that kind of a violation of that trusting relationship.

These are examples of opportunities for us to address, once and for all, the implications of people who are allowed to move from one situation to another when reports come forward and stop. We call that pass the trash.

Today, it is time for our body to put forward the kind of legislation that will assure that there is a duty to report so, along with due process, there can be an internal investigation to assure and reporting requirements so that these individuals are not able to victimize future young athletes, future people who put themselves in the position of trust.

Mr. Chair, I applaud my colleagues who support this legislation, and I ask that we do so with a strong voice from this House.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Media, Pennsylvania as it celebrates its 150th Anniversary on September 8, 2018.

In 1868, Father Henry Wright became the first pastor of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church. As Media grew, the parish school opened its doors in 1912 and soon served many families.

In the last 25 years, the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church has continued to grow and adopted the motto: The Helping Hands of Christ. The growth and development of the church's many ministries are a testament to this motto. Its many services include the St. Vincent de Paul Society, which provides shelter to the poor of Media, feeding the poor at the St. Francis Soup Kitchen monthly, collecting clothes for St. John's hospice, making rosaries for those imprisoned, knitting baby caps for premature births, and traveling on mission trips to St. Croix to aid a sister parish.

While the number of parishioners has grown immensely in the last one hundred and fifty years, the church's facilities and staff have kept pace. Most recently, the parish center has been refurbished and they have also added a youth Minister to their staff to develop ongoing spiritual endeavors for the children of the parish.

Mr. Speaker, we are grateful to the work of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church, its parishioners, and Father Ed Bell, and I hope the church will continue to grow and thrive.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the men and women of law enforcement who put their lives on the line day and night protecting our communities, like my nephew Ethan Meehan.

As we close this year's Police Week, I would like to pay particular tribute to the law enforcement personnel who have been killed or wounded in the line of duty, like Officer Christopher Dorman of Folcroft, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, who was shot and wounded last June but bravely back on the job just weeks later.

Sadly, four of Pennsylvania's finest lost their lives in the line of duty last year:

Pennsylvania State Trooper Eugene Weaver;

Canonsburg Patrolman Scott Bashioum;

Pennsylvania Corrections Officer David Weaver; and

Luzerne County Corrections Officer Kristopher Moules.

We thank them for their service, and we are indebted for their sacrifice. We honor their memories, and our thoughts and prayers are with their families.