Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, on Wednesday my friends Patti and John Garamendi experienced the loss of Patti's mother, Edna Merle Wilkinson, who passed away at the age of 92.

I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Edna's rich life, which brought so much happiness to so many people.

Edna lived for many years in my district, graduating from high school in Watsonville. She married John Wilkinson, owner of Granite Construction Company, and helped build that small local company into one of the largest construction firms in the Nation.

Edna offers us many lessons on life, how to live happily and have a positive effect on others. I request that the following tribute to this great woman be included in the Congressional Record.

Edna Merle Wilkinson passed away peacefully on May 19th,

2010, after nearly 92 long years of life. Merle was born May

26, 1918 in Marlow, Oklahoma to Mary Alma Wright Twyman and

Harvey Hinton Twyman.

Merle was the 5th of their seven children. Her siblings

included brothers Louie and Col. Richard Twyman, and sisters

Miriam Lister, Evelyn Halward, Erline Flores, and Alice

Flournoy.

Merle lived and attended schools in Watsonville and

Alturas, California where her accomplishments and actions are

evidence of her compassionate and driven nature. In 1936 she

graduated from Watsonville High School where she was awarded

the American Legion Award for leadership, courage and

academic excellence. She also was elected Student Body

Secretary, served as the captain of the field hockey team and

competed in ice skating events. After her graduation, Merle

attended Business College and was a legal assistant to the

Superior Court Judge in Salinas, CA.

Merle found her partner for life at a young age--on June

16, 1940 she married John ``Jack'' E. Wilkinson, the son of

Walter J. Wilikinson, the founder of Granite Construction

Company. Together they built the highway and road

construction firm into what is today one of the half dozen

largest in the country.

Merle and Jack were blessed with three daughters. Susan,

Patti and Nancy were all born in Watsonville and attended the

same high school their great grandmother Carrie Earle

Wilkinson had graduated from in 1894.

Merle, a bright loving mother and wife, was also known for

her community involvement. She was active in the Eastern Star

and the Johnny Appleseed Auxiliary where she hosted

fundraisers for local charities. Her deep involvement with

the activities of her children blended with her community

spirit and she often spent hours cooking for major events and

volunteering in the schools.

From the kitchen to the football field and great outdoors,

Merle was also an avid sports fan and athlete. She enjoyed

fishing, camping, hiking and could often be found in the

rooting section of Cal Berkeley football games when her son-

in-law John Garamendi was playing.

After her husband passed away in October of 1969, Merle

moved to Stockton to be closer to her daughters. Always one

for adventure and challenges, she spent the next several

years travelling the world. With a fearless spirit she rode

horseback at the Treetops Lodge at Richard Holden's in Kenya,

rode camels in Egypt and even elephants in India, keeping

wonderful postcard journals for her grandchildren. She

visited over 60 countries and was a true pioneer.

Merle's energy and heart of service has never wavered

throughout her life. In Stockton she was one of the founders

of the Lady Bugs Auxiliary; an organization that supports the

developmentally disabled. Having lost her daughter, Nancy, to

juvenile diabetes in 1995, she was supportive of the American

Diabetes Association and could always be found taking

casseroles to families of cancer patients.

While living in Stockton in the latter years of her life,

Merle also became involved in local politics, making

incredible lunches for volunteers and walking precincts with

her grandchildren.

Merle's life is celebrated by her daughter, Patti, and her

son-in-law, Congressman John Garamendi, who lovingly cared

for her in their home over the past two-and-a-half years. Her

12 grandchildren and her 21 great-grandchildren also

celebrate her life. Her work ethic, generosity, spirit of

service and adventure, and love for family continues to serve

as an inspiration to all who knew her.

The pioneering spirit that her family brought to America

over 350 years ago lives on through her legacy.

Madam Speaker, on behalf of the House of Representatives, I would like to extend our sincere condolences to my friends Patti and John Garamendi, both fellow Peace Corps volunteers, and our sincere thanks to Edna Merle Wilkinson for serving as such a great example to us all.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Cristina Rose, who today is receiving the prestigious Crystal Eagle Award at Coro Southern California's 35th Annual Awards Gala.

Cristina is co-founder and senior counsel at Rose & Kindel, one of the premier public affairs firms in California. But more importantly, she has a long and successful career in public service, communications and public affairs in California, stretching back to her days of service under Governors Ronald Reagan and Edmund G. Brown, Jr.

Cristina is a board member of the American Council of Young Political Leaders and the California Historical Society. She also serves on the Board of Governors of the HOPE PAC, on the Board of Directors of the Literacy Network of L.A., and on the Board of Directors of the Metropolitan Los Angeles Y.M.C.A. She is also a member of the Pacific Council on International Policy, the Trusteeship and the International Women's Forum.

She is former vice president of the city of Los Angeles Environmental Quality Board, served on UCLA Governmental Affairs Steering Committee, as a member of the Board of Trustees of the California Journal Foundation and on the Editorial Advisory Board of the California Journal, and was a founding board member of the California Channel.

The Crystal Eagle Award being presented to Cristina is given each year to four leaders ``whose involvement in public life has made an extraordinary contribution to our region.'' Cristina is a perfect example of how we can make a difference in our communities.

Coro is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to prepare leaders to deal creatively, ethically and effectively with the challenges of democratic governance. Its competitive fellowship programs give these leaders the tools to make responsible decisions in the face of change, ambiguity and differing points of view. Coro embodies that belief, and its many highly esteemed graduates have demonstrated that an individual can truly make a significant difference in society.

Madam Speaker, on behalf of the House of Representatives, I would like to extend our congratulations to Cristina on winning this well- deserved award.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of Dan and Dee Devlin, who through their 42 year marriage embodied the deepest love for each other, their family, their community, and the greater world around them. Earlier this year, tragically, these two wonderful people died within weeks of each other.

It's not often that one meets a couple who are so completely one. I count it as a great honor to have known Dan and Dee Devlin and I extend to their family and many friends my deepest sympathies and those of the whole House of Representatives.

I first met these two wonderful people in 1996 when COL Dan Devlin came to Monterey, Calif., to assume command of the Defense Language Institute, our Nation's premier foreign language training center. Colonel Devlin personified DLI's thoughtful, disciplined, and cosmopolitan commitment to our Nation's defense. At DLI, he built a stronger and more vibrant academic and military institution. He boosted student achievement by enhancing the teaching environment for DLI's native speaker faculty, focusing on professional growth, curriculum development, and performance-based merit pay. These efforts positioned DLI for its rapid response to the post 9/11 wave of new language training demands.

Dee was born January 16, 1947, in Williston, ND, to Roman and Ardell Daniel. A few months later, on April 21, Dan was born to Robert and Marion Devlin in nearby Northwood, ND. They both graduated from Ray High School in 1965 and North Dakota State University in 1969. After dating for 6 years, the high school and college sweethearts married in Ray, ND on June 4, 1968.

Upon graduation, Dan began his military career as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. His Army service included duty as an intelligence officer, a DLI student of Russian, commanding officer of the 6th Psychological Operations Battalion, Airborne, deputy commander of 4th Psychological Operations during the first Gulf War, and just prior to his DLI assignment, chief of Psychological Operations and Civil Affairs for the Joint Staff in the Pentagon.

Following a distinguished 31 year military career, Colonel Devlin retired from the Army in 2000 and became, once again, simply Dan. He continued to work in the language field as a DoD civilian employee.

Dee held numerous civil service positions as she accompanied Dan in his military career both at home and abroad: library technician in Garmisch, human resources specialist at the American Elementary/High School in Munich, and administrative officer at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey. Above all, Dee was the light of a family that grew to include Daniel Devlin, Jr. and his wife, Tara, their daughters Reilly and Elliott, and son, Robert Devlin and his wife, Lara.

Madam Speaker, Dan and Dee Devlin represented the best of our Nation and humanity: family, faith, public service, and an appetite for life that made the world a better place for everyone they touched. May God bless them and their memory.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for one minute. This morning I had the privilege of attending the funeral ceremony for Col. Dan Devlin and his wife Darlene. They were interred at Arlington National Cemetery with full honors. Col. Devlin had served as Commandant at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey in my district.

However, while I was at the funeral I missed four votes. Had I been here I would have voted in this way: ``Yes'' on H.R. 1514, the Juvenile Accountability Block Grant Program Reauthorization; ``yes'' on H.R. 5325, the America COMPETES Reauthorization; ``yes'' on H. Res. 1325, Recognizing National Missing Childrens Day; and ``yes'' on H. Res. 1362, to commend the life of Lena Horne.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the Monterey Bay Blues Festival on the occasion of its twenty-fifth anniversary. For a quarter of a century, the Festival has been dedicated to the stewardship and celebration of this uniquely American musical legacy here on the Monterey Peninsula.

Six years ago the Festival started its Blues in the Schools (BITS) program, which has spread to five school districts in Monterey County and keeps on growing. As part of the regular music program, BITS introduces the blues to young people who hope to find their own expressions in music. Scholarships and grants help to keep students focused on and developing passion for their art. BITS clinicians support choirs, guitar classes, combos, and school bands.

In the words of my friend and former staff member, Doris M. Jones, chair of the anniversary committee: ``. . . the (festival) began with a few local men and women who had a desire to preserve the rich heritage of blues music, as well as continue to perpetuate the heartfelt sounds created out of times of sorrow, pain, jubilation and joy. . . . `The Blues' have a way of touching that place in each of us that brings out a deep emotion and understanding that, regardless of how difficult the times, things will get better. Whether it is our economy, our health, our relationships, times of love or times of war, the expression of the blues reminds us that we are more alike than we are different.''

The mission of the Monterey Bay Blues Festival is to give back to the community and spread this distinctively American art form through the Festival and by supporting youth and the arts. In this way, they expand the appreciation of their evolving artistic legacy and inspire a passion for music, especially the Blues.

Madam Speaker, I want to hold up the Festival as a cultural institution, an expression of what makes our nation a worldwide leader in the music that is unique to our land. May their continued success inspire many more generations to celebrate our nation's musical heritage and participate in its future.

On behalf of the whole House, I am honored to extend to the Monterey Bay Blues Festival the gratitude of the Congress and the American people for their past and future service.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate Earth Day and speak of the important role our oceans play in combating global warming.

As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, we must remember that Earth Day issues are closely linked to ocean health. Think about it. Seventy percent of the earth is covered by water. The ocean plays a key role in climate formation. It is not only the atmosphere that collects CO2, but also the oceans are trapping CO2. That is why we have melting ice caps, rising sea levels, hotter-than-average temperatures, and more severe storms and periods of drought.

Ocean acidification has the greatest impact on corals, clams, oysters, and crabs. The seafood that we eat, like salmon, depend on those. Ocean health is directly related to land health. As we learn about our responsibility for the sustainable well-being of our planet, we must become concerned citizens of oceans as well.

Earth Day is ocean day. Think about it. There is more ocean than earth.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in observance of the National Day of Silence. April 16 was the 14th year we've commemorated the National Day of Silence, a time when students across the country remain silent for the whole day to draw attention to discrimination toward their LGBT peers.

Every day students who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered, as well as those who are perceived to be LGBT, are subjected to harassment, bullying, intimidation and violence. These actions are incredibly harmful to students, and they also damage our educational system.

In addition to supporting the National Day of Silence, I'm also proud to be cosponsor of H.R. 4530, the Student Nondiscrimination Act. This act is necessary because bullying and discrimination are the norm for so many LGBT young people. These youth face unique challenges in their physical and mental health. Last weekend a group of constituents hosted a Queer Youth Health Summit in Santa Cruz, California.

This group also works to identify mental and physical health needs and promote safe and healthy lifestyles for queer and questioning youth in the region. It's unfortunate a summit like this is necessary, but I commend these students for responding so compassionately.

Though many lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender advocates and their straight allies were silent last Friday, we in Congress should never be. Our job is to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to enter a letter from my next- door neighbor born with spina bifida. His parents were told to leave him in the hospital because he would be mentally retarded and he would never be able to get out of institutional care. His parents loved him and got him into school. He went through public high school, went to the University of California, graduated and got into Special Olympics. He tried to get a job. His coaches told him you will never be able to afford a job, you have a preexisting condition, you can't afford the insurance. You will have to stay on Medicaid the rest of your life.

He writes in his letter to me, Dear Congressman, and goes on to say in closing, I ask that you please pass this comprehensive health care package so that today's kids aren't told the same thing I was told. Never again should boys and girls with disabilities hear from their mentors, You cannot afford to work.

Emancipate people into the workforce; allow them to have insurance without preexisting conditions.

I am proud that Ben Spangenberg is here today sitting in that corner. I am proud that he is a constituent of this great country.

Mr. Speaker, I rise on B-WET. I want to talk about B-WET rather than all wet.

I rise in support of this legislation, and I think it is interesting that people are talking about health care because, if you don't have a healthy planet and healthy ocean, all of this discussion about how you care for human beings on the planet is for naught. So let's, for a moment, just focus on a healthy Earth that we may understand, and this bill does that by this program called B-WET.

I am a strong advocate for California's B-WET program, and I come to the floor today to share a few of the stories that I have heard over the years from students and teachers who have benefited from the support.

I would like to tell you about a student who went through California State University of Monterey Bay's Recruitment in Science Education program, a program called RISE, which we all support, to try to get young people interested in the sciences. This young fellow started the RISE program when he was in the sixth grade. He was never very engaged in activities. He was very shy, and he got average grades. He probably would have quit if it hadn't been for his mom and the RISE staff pushing him to stay active. His experiences during a water testing program on the Salinas River while he was a sophomore in high school motivated him to get better grades and to get into college. RISE, the program that he went through grammar school and high school with, is happy to announce that he is now studying microbiology at the University of California, Davis. This program motivated him to go into higher education.

The other story I would like to share with you is about a teacher from Moss Landing Marine Laboratory. That teacher participated in the marine lab program for 3 years. Unfortunately, this year that teacher was given a pink slip and does not have a job, but he told me that his participation in the Moss Landing Marine Lab program was the only thing that kept him going.

I thank the gentlewoman.

This interaction and relationship that he built with the teachers in the program have kept him motivated and excited about bringing meaningful watershed educational experiences to the classroom with something that he knew was making a big difference to his students.

These are stories about students and teachers that wouldn't exist without this program.

Mr. Speaker, we in Congress are constantly trying to think of new ways to get students engaged in science. I can attest that this program works and is money well spent. I urge its adoption.

Madam Speaker, I rise today for this opportunity to speak as an original cosponsor of this bill on what I believe is the foremost foreign policy issue facing the United States today. There is perhaps no more important matter on the table right now than Afghanistan, not least because every dollar we spend abroad for war is a dollar of investment lost to all of our communities here at home.

We have spent more than $250 billion fighting and occupying Afghanistan. President Obama is now implementing his plan to send an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan, which will cost another $33 billion. This is an enormous amount of money, and the security gains are dubious when there are more al Qaeda in other parts of the globe.

So long as the United States has a major military presence in Afghanistan, long-term stability will continue to be a goal just out of our reach. More troops are not the answer.

We need to turn the corner. We must rebuild. We must build a governing capacity among the Afghans, not military fighting capacity. As long as Afghanistan is able to depend exclusively on the United States for stability, the longer they will continue to do so. The quicker we prepare for transfer authority to the Afghans, the sooner we will be able to leave the country.

Over a year ago, President Obama announced his strategy to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda in its safe havens of Afghanistan and Pakistan. I made clear that I would not rubber-stamp his strategy for more troops. The only way we can solve this mess is to put in place a regional strategy with international buy-in. That strategy must include a strong civilian component capable of achieving diplomatic and development objectives, as well as security goals.

I was distressed to read several months ago that Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke acknowledged that we had built almost no capacity in the Afghan authorities.

We sent our troops to war in Afghanistan, but after more than 8 years of war, we are only now actively trying to support peace. For years, I have worked to develop a Civilian Response Corps that can bring the whole of government approach to winning the peace.

We have proven time and time again that we can kick down doors, but we have not yet proven that we can build peace. We are finally standing up the Civilian Response Corps, and we are finally developing the capacity so that war without end is not our only option.

In the recent operation in Marjah, the military aspect of the operation started in February 12, and by February 25 the Afghan flag was raised. This week, Afghan President Karzai, together with General Stanley McChrystal, visited Marjah. They met with elders who told President Karzai they wanted Afghan troops, not international forces, in their town. They expressed frustration at the government's lack of ability to provide services. It is those public services--provided by a civilian corps supported by Afghan security--that will win the peace.

The long-term solution in Afghanistan will be a civilian solution, and the sooner we move to this next phase the better. For this reason, I believe a vote for success in Afghanistan is a vote for this resolution to remove our military troops by year's end.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend Lauren O'Connor who is driving across America to raise awareness and $100,000 for Great Danes and animal rescues. Each year, millions of animals, mostly cats and dogs, are euthanized due to over-population and the lack of people willing to adopt them, at the same time that many animals are bred for the sole purpose of being bought and sold at pet stores.

Lauren, originally from Texas, went to college in West Virginia. She graduated with a degree in Public Relations. It was there that she met her Great Dane, Harley. Now 6, Harley is her traveling companion on this cross country journey.

Beginning on March 1st in New Jersey, Lauren, who resigned from her job at a Fortune 10 company in order to pursue her commitment to rescue dogs, will visit over 56 cities in her travels across the country, organizing events and benefits to raise money and educate people about Great Danes and rescue dogs. All of the proceeds that are raised will be donated to rescues and shelters around the country.

She is able to take on this worthy cause because of the kindness or her family and friends. In addition, complete strangers have been able to follow Lauren on her adventures through her Web site and her Twitter account.

Madam Speaker, Lauren O'Connor is venturing on an experience of a lifetime. Her trip across the country to raise awareness and money for rescue dogs is inspiring to us all and I would like to commend Lauren on her commitment to this very worthy cause.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a great American, Mrs. Agnes Tebo for a lifetime of public service and civil rights activism. This coming Saturday, the Monterey County Branch of the NAACP will honor Mrs. Tebo with its President's award. I will have the great pleasure of attending this ceremony and in conveying to her the gratitude and best wishes of the House. I am particularly excited because I have been privileged for many years to count myself among her friends. Indeed, she has been a great role model and inspiration to several generations of public servants from Monterey County. And that remains true today; at 95 Agnes Tebo is truly one of our nation's great treasures.

Born October 25, 1914, in Port Arthur, Texas, Agnes Dronet grew up in a world dominated by Jim Crow's pervasive injustice. As a child, she remembers learning to live with the separate schools, restaurants, and other humiliations that so dominated the daily lives of Port Arthur's African American citizens. More ominously, Agnes can remember the climate of fear created by the Klu Klux Klan through murders, cross burnings, and other terrorist acts. She recently told a reporter that ``we had to walk a straight line or we knew we'd end up dead. The people who did it would brag about it, and nobody would do anything about it. The law wasn't enforced. As a child, I just accepted it. I just thought that's how life was.'' But that did not mean that Agnes thought it was right. In 1937, at the age of 23, Agnes found her way to Salinas, California, after a childhood spent working to help her single mother

support their family. She soon found work as a housekeeper for one of the City's founding families. Several years later years later, she married Louis ``Bonnie'' Tebo, a former classmate from Port Arthur who had also relocated to Salinas. They were married for more than 50 years when he died.

While less obvious than in the South of their childhood, racism still found Agnes and Bonnie in Salinas. For example, African Americans found it next to impossible to buy property. Realtors simply refused to show, and sellers to sell, property to African American buyers. Agnes had been a member of the NAACP since her teenage years in Port Arthur. She drew on that experience in 1939 to co-found a Salinas branch. With so few African Americans living in Salinas, they had to recruit white friends to join in order to meet the fifty member threshold for a new chapter. The new branch took on the property issue and made steady progress. With Agnes often leading the way over the years, they took on many other challenges facing people of color in the Salinas valley. In 2006, Agnes helped smooth the way for the Salinas and Monterey Peninsula branches to merge together into the Monterey County Branch.

Despite her humble origins, Agnes has managed to travel the world and devote countless hours to aiding the needy. In 1981, for example, she and Bonnie helped purchase and distribute food, clothing and medicine to 1,200 people in Haiti. She works as a liaison for the NAACP's Jan Wright Scholarship, and she continues to support The Agnes and Bonne Tebo Scholarship at Hartnell College.

Madam Speaker, I know that I speak for the whole House in extending to Agnes Tebo our deep gratitude for her work to improve the lives of her neighbors, both in Salinas and around the world.

I live in Carmel, California, and when the phone rang and I heard that Jack Murtha had died, I couldn't believe it. I broke into tears. I just couldn't believe it. It was like when I heard my father had died. And what I did at that moment was I did the same thing when my dad died. I sat down and I wrote a letter to Jack Murtha. Here it is:

``Dear Jack, I can't believe you're gone. Gone from the Pennsylvania Corner, from your chair where we would all come to see you. Each checking in during floor sessions on your opinion on military issues and Pennsylvania politics. And we talked about our issues, about base closure progress, about programs that were working and programs that had problems. Always thanking you for your help. Thanking you for your earmarks. I'll never forget what you did with your earmark for breast cancer research, for child care centers at military bases, for military education. More than anything else, you were concerned about the welfare of our troops and especially their families.

``Remember when you got me to go to Walter Reed Hospital and Bethesda Naval Hospital to visit the war wounded and how we worked to get golf carts for disabled soldiers by insisting that each of the 177 golf courses operated by the services have carts for the disabled?

``You always asked me, `How is that university that we got at Fort Ord doing?' I thanked you for the help in getting the $65 million to get it started. Jack, Cal State University Monterey Bay is doing really well, with ever-growing enrollment and faculty. You can be proud of your role you played in converting swords to ploughshares.

``You got really excited when I showed you what I had done to bring all the military missions in Monterey

County together to form Team Monterey, showing the brochure indicating that over $1 billion was spent in Monterey County for the DOD efforts there. You were going to see if this team effort could be done for your district and for the State of Pennsylvania.

``Jack, you were quite the Zeus. Everyone came to you, loved you, loved your good nature, your loyalty, your friendship, your laugh, and your wisdom. Remember how you would bet on how long the debate would take on the Defense appropriations bills? You always won. I was shocked that the biggest appropriations account in the Federal Government could be enacted with the shortest debate. You laughed and said, `All the problems were worked out in committee, we don't need floor debate.' At first I thought it was a fluke. But over the years, I learned you made it so.

``Jack, thanks for coming out to the Monterey Peninsula to visit the Naval Postgraduate School and the Defense Language Institute. You were a good listener, and always insisted no PowerPoints, no BS, just the problems. No one in Congress cuts to the issue faster than you.

``I remember your delight in hearing from an IED specialist just back from Iraq who asked you, `Why don't we figure out what makes cultures set these things off in the first place?' You loved that thinking. Thanks again for allowing me to ride back to D.C. on Mil Air. We brought Paul Stockton along and had a wonderful discussion on Iraq and how we might exit. By the way, Jack, Paul is now the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Americas' Security Affairs. I know how much you respected his insight.

``Thanks, Jack, for always asking me for copies of photos I took, not of you, but of your staff. I remember the photo of John Hugya when he was your district director taken with President Clinton. You insisted I give it to you for him. Remember the time you hung up on a President when he called you? You had guts.

``I remember going to your district and being in a meeting with the area economic development folks. You were giving them the Washington update. It was cold and wet, but full of people. I admired how devoted they were to you. And I took pictures, which you wanted to pass on to them. Seeing the countryside and the poverty of the area made me realize how lucky I was to represent my district. You really helped people in need. That is why you are loved in your district and here on the floor of the House of Representatives.

``The House Chamber has a lot of famous fixtures and paintings, statues, reliefs, but you are going to stand out as one of our greats. You showed your profile in courage in taking a nationally profiled lead against the war in Iraq that you originally supported. And you were attacked by everyone except the military. They knew that you knew it couldn't be sustained.

``When they attacked you with big campaign expenditures to defeat you, your friends responded without even being asked. The word was out Jack was in trouble, and we responded.

``Jack, you shouldn't have died. It is a real shock, not only to you, your friends, and this institution, but to your beloved family. You and Joyce had such a special partnership.

``I loved accompanying you both on the Appropriations Committee CODEL to California's National Parks, the joy you got in seeing how a former army base in San Francisco could be turned into the Golden Gate National Park, and even Alcatraz is now a tourist site. You loved being a tourist in San Francisco and Joyce was so appreciative of Nancy Pelosi's hospitality long before she sought leadership roles.

``While the Democratic Caucus was visiting Nemacolin Resort in your state you encouraged me to visit the two Frank Lloyd Wright homes there. Joyce led the tour. She was a model host and a good friend to all. I can't imagine her life without you, nor yours without her. This has to be as hard for your children as it was for me in losing my mom at an early age. Time heals--unfortunately it is going to take a long time.

``Congress will miss you as a great member and, more importantly, as a caring, sensitive friend. We will try to fill in, but the credibility will be lacking and the outcome less successful.

``Just know you made a difference, a big difference--out here on the Central Coast of California--you helped launch a new university, upgrade the Naval Postgratuate School, and provided the programs that let our students learn foreign languages faster and better.

``You were the Captain of our ship, and Oh Captain, you will be sorely missed!''

I'd like to include the letters from the Naval Postgraduate School and the Defense Manpower Data Center in Monterey in sympathy.

Naval Postgraduate School,

Monterey, CA.

Congressman Murtha was a true servant to the public, a

throwback with few peers matching his length of service to

the U.S. House of Representatives. Service to his nation was

perhaps a constant throughout his life--not only is he one of

our nation's longest serving representatives, he was also a

retired Marine Corps colonel, joining the service in 1952

during the Korean War out of a deep sense of obligation to

his country.

Congressman Murtha also served as Chairman of the Defense

Appropriations Subcommittee--and was the ranking Democrat on

the committee for nearly two decades--which put him in a

position to impact so many communities far beyond

Pennsylvania's 12th District.

That impact was felt here at the Naval Postgraduates

School, where he was a friend to NPS. He believed in the

value of graduate education for military officers and was

consistently and particularly supportive of NPS over the

years. Congressman Murtha recognized the value of the NPS

MISSION in supporting our military forces and NPS unique

contributions to national security.

Leonard A. Ferrari,

Executive Vice President & Provost.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the Uni-Capitol Washington Internship Program. This annual program is a wonderful educational experience for both the Congressional office and especially for the visiting intern. The eight week program delivers some of Australia's best and brightest university students who have exhibited a passion for civic engagement and public service.

Eric Federing of KPMG is the inspiration behind the Uni-Capitol Washington Internship Program which he first organized in 2000. I thank him for his efforts in promoting U.S.-Australian understanding through this program and am proud to say that since its inception I have been a proud participant. This year, I welcomed an outstanding student- ambassador to my office, Erin Riley, who has shared with us the different perspective she offers as a newcomer to Washington, D.C. Ms. Riley joined my office from the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney, and has proven to be a shining example of the high caliber of students who are involved in

this program. Currently undertaking a Master of Letters degree in U.S. Studies, Erin has relished the opportunity to see the practical application of her studies in American politics and has had the chance to gain hands-on experience in working on domestic issues, especially health care policy.

Since welcoming Ms. Riley to my office on January 4, she has been an invaluable asset. In addition to attending committee hearings and briefings, assisting my staff with legislative research, and taking an active role in our mail program, Erin has demonstrated her commitment and enthusiasm for understanding our American government. Erin has particularly enjoyed the opportunity to meet constituents while giving Capitol tours, and to offer her perspective on the United States from the view of an outsider.

Erin is one of several outstanding Australian interns. This year, 12 students from across Australia were matched with Congressional offices. They were drawn from seven Australian universities in four different Australian states. The Uni-Capitol program gives its students practical experience and allows them to gain knowledge and understanding of the internal workings of the United States Government.

Including this current group, 105 Australian students from 10 universities have interned in Washington, D.C. since the program's inception 11 years ago. Due credit must go to the founder of the University-Capitol Washington Internship Program, Eric Federing. Mr. Federing is a former senior House and Senate congressional staffer who has worked to develop the exchange of ideas and knowledge between the U.S. and Australia through his efforts with the Uni-Capitol Washington Internship Program.

Madam Speaker, I strongly encourage my colleagues to help foster international connections by participating in this rewarding program. It is truly heartening to see how much this program has grown over the years, and I look forward to its continued success. I ask my colleagues to join with me in recognizing the contributions of the Uni-Capitol Washington Internship Program and, again, thank Erin Riley for her admirable participation and diligent work.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of Martha Lois McGinnis Cameron Norton, or just simply Martha. It is with great sadness that I must share the news of her death last week at the young age of eighty-eight. Martha was one of those Americans who embodies the meaning of the word citizenship; who always worked to strengthen our democracy. Martha was born in 1922 in the little town of Washington, Iowa. She grew up on a farm and spent her childhood raising corn, tending hogs, and seeing to all the other chores of an Iowa farm girl. But being from a place called Washington, she had politics in her blood. As a child she saw both President Hoover and Governor Roosevelt speak during the 1932 presidential campaign. Four years later she worked her first of many campaigns when she helped re-elect President Roosevelt.

In 1945, following her graduation with a degree in chemistry from Monmouth College, Illinois, Martha became a research scientist for Shell Chemical Company in San Francisco. After several years, she returned to Iowa to take a position as the principal of Ainsworth High School. Following another stint as a research scientist, Martha settled on a career in teaching, which brought her to Monterey in 1962. And while Martha built a stellar career of teaching with the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District, she is remembered by the wider world for her relentless political activism.

That activism began in earnest in 1946 when Martha joined a local campaign to save San Francisco's landmark cable car system. In 1956, she worked to re-elect President Eisenhower. In 1959, she helped run her father's successful write-in campaign to become Mayor of her hometown. Soon after her move to Monterey, Martha began working on numerous local election races, including one of my father's California State Senate re-election campaigns. In the late 60s, she worked on the coastal protection campaign that culminated in the voters' 1972 adoption of the landmark Coastal Act. In 1976, Martha worked as a precinct walker in Leon Panetta's first successful run for Congress. She also worked on Jimmy Carter's presidential campaign, coordinating more than 100 volunteers from their teens into their 70s.

Martha became a bedrock fixture of elected politics in Monterey County. Campaign after campaign, she made the calls, distributed the signs, gathered the volunteers, registered voters, got out the vote, and all the other indispensible grassroots tasks that make participatory democracy work. I know all this because she helped me in every one of my own campaigns going back to my service as a County Supervisor in the 1970s. I often said that she was my political mother.

Martha was also a tireless volunteer for many community causes. She devoted countless hours to many different boards, commissions, and other community organizations, including the MPUSD school board, the Highway 68 committee, the Toxic Waste committee for Fort Ord, several League of Women Voters committees, and local Democratic committees and clubs.

Martha is survived by her husband, Joe Norton; sons, Jeff Norton and his wife Dana; Christopher Norton and his wife Julie; daughter, Cheryl Herzog and her husband, David; and daughter-in-law Linda Cameron; as well as ten grandchildren; one great-grandchild; and her brother, Bill McGinnis. She was predeceased by her son, Bill Cameron, in 2007.

Madam Speaker, Martha Norton touched countless people through her service and good works. Our Nation is poorer for her passing but enriched by the example she leaves behind.