Steven M. Palazzo

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize one of my district staff, Ms. Debra Hembree, for her 11 years of dedicated service as a congressional staffer. In 2011, Debra began working in my Pascagoula district office as a Congressional Liaison providing casework assistance for constituents in several counties throughout the Fourth Congressional District.

Debra is originally from Canton, MS, and is a lifelong Mississippian. She attended and graduated from the University of Southern Mississippi and Mississippi State University, receiving her Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education and Master's in Elementary Education, respectively.

Debra served the community, educating young children, the future leaders of our great state, during her 30 year teaching career in the Pascagoula-Gautier School District before her retirement in 2004. Shortly after her retirement, Debra continued her teaching career at the Murray School at Wilmer Hall in Mobile, Alabama. While there, she embraced this new and challenging opportunity as the resource teacher for children in grades 6 through 12.

Debra's life was blessed 10 years ago when she met and married her husband, Tom. Together they share 3 children: Debra's daughter Anna, Anna's husband Chip; Tom's son Mitch, Mitch's wife Diana; and Tom's son Austin. They also have 2 precious grandsons, Jack and Hudson.

The foundation of Debra's life is her faith and belief that we are here to serve others. She is currently a member of First Baptist Church of Vancleave. Through the years, she has been involved in various areas of church service, including the preschool ministry, the Girls' Auxiliary, the Women's Ministry team, and Vacation Bible School. She has also been a member of the choir,

I genuinely appreciate Debra's years of service to the constituents of the Fourth Congressional District. She has always been a loyal team member who has worked diligently

to assist constituents. Her positive attitude and exceptional work ethic are exemplary. Thank you, Madam Speaker, for allowing me to express my gratitude to Mrs. Debra Hembree for 11 years of dedicated service.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Sergeant First Class (Retired) Brenna Holder for her over 31-year career to the Mississippi Army National Guard where she served as an Active Guard Reserve Soldier (AGR). She has also served in my office for nearly 4 years as a Congressional Staffer assisting nearly 3,000 of my constituents.

She comes from a long line of Patriots, most notably her maternal grandfather, Dominick Fenelli, a United States Marine Corps, World War II Purple Heart recipient. Like her grandfather, her service began when she was 18 years old.

She enlisted as a Private attending basic training at Fort Jackson, SC. She served with the Installation Support Unit at Camp Shelby as an Administrative Specialist. She was mobilized in 1990 for Operation Desert Storm in support of Camp Shelby. She moved to Washington, D.C. in 1991 and served in the Special Actions Branch at National Guard Bureau. She served as a National Guard Support Coordinator handling logistics and administrative support for the Operation Desert Storm Homecoming Parades in Washington, D.C., and New York City. In 1997, she earned her diploma as a Licensed Practical Nurse while serving in the 108th Combat Support Hospital at Fort Indiantown Gap, PA. In 2000, she was hired AGR to serve as the Medical Detachment 6 NCOIC at Camp Shelby. She was mobilized again in 2004 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in support of units mobilizing at Mobilization Center Shelby. She later served as the Human Resources Senior Noncommissioned Officer in the Personnel Section S1 at the 154th Regiment, Regional Training Institute. She was instrumental in her section receiving favorable results in multiple TRADOC inspections. She served a few years as the Mississippi National Guard NCO Association's Awards Chairperson. She received training as an Intelligence Analyst at Fort Bragg, NC, Emergency Medical Technician at Camp Shelby, and Army Instructor at the Regional Training Institute at Camp Shelby. Her military training culminated with her completion of the Master Leader Course. She was honorarily promoted to Master Sergeant in the State of Mississippi upon her retirement.

She received many state and federal awards while in service. Most notably, the Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medals, and Army Achievement Medals.

Brenna was also a former Miss Mississippi Petite and selected in the top ten at the National level. She earned her Associates of Applied Science degree from Delaware County Community College graduating with high honors in Surgical Technology. She worked in the Operating Room at Wesley Medical Center before returning to Active Duty. She also studied Management Information Systems and Applied Technology at the University of Southern Mississippi.

Like many soldiers, she juggled it all while raising her family. She has two boys, and has been married to her husband, Josh, for over 22 years.

She has been a compassionate, dedicated, and loyal member of my team. I am honored to recognize her for her outstanding service to my constituents of South Mississippi and her example as a true American Patriot.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize a former member of my congressional staff, Colleen Kennedy of Ocean Springs, Mississippi. For 5 and a half years, Colleen served as an essential member of my D.C. team, ending her time in my office as the Communications Director. Colleen has always had a passion for helping others, and it was through her experiences following Hurricane Katrina that she decided to pursue a career that allowed her to serve her home state of Mississippi

Colleen arrived in Washington in 2016 to serve as an intern in my office. She was then hired as Staff Assistant. Colleen continued to get more involved in serving the state of Mississippi when she joined the Mississippi Society of Washington, D.C., as a board member, it was her way of bringing pieces of home to our nation's capital.

Colleen was promoted to Legislative Assistant, where she volunteered to handle my office's flood insurance policy portfolio, a significant undertaking. Colleen led a coalition of Republicans in the House in stopping rate increases, defeating harmful flood insurance reforms in the House. Without her leadership, expertise, or dedication, nearly 65,000 south Mississippians would face more expensive premiums. Colleen stepped up to tackle a long-standing issue from the Affordable Care Act that would have negatively impacted hospitals in the state of Mississippi and the care available to Mississippians.

Colleen was passionate about legislative issues, but her true talent was communications roles. From being a press assistant to ending as the Communications Director, Colleen thrived being the spokesperson for myself and south Mississippi.

I am so grateful for all her great work for south Mississippi, from mailers, letters, meetings, tele-town halls, interviews, social media, and legislative portfolios. Colleen always served with integrity, loyalty, and passion, often sharing our inside saying of ``vote right'' as I left for votes. South Mississippi was her home for decades and will always hold a special place in her heart. And knowing her, there's only one way to conclude these remarks, vote right.