Troy Carter

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, in Louisiana, we know the awesome power of the water. We also know that it is the lifeblood of our Nation's economy and environment. The Army Corps of Engineers is the Federal department that most supports water management, ecosystem restoration, and flood control, critical issues in my region. The Water Resources Development Act is the mechanism Congress uses for these authorizations, and it is a critical policy for my district. As a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I am proud to have worked to include important updates for my district in WRDA, such as instructing the Corps of Engineers to continue paused ecosystem restoration on the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet; authorizing $136 million for St. John, St. Bernard, St. James, St. Charles, and Plaquemines Parishes for comprehensive treatment facilities and water infrastructure. And on a personal note, the final version included my amendment to improve safety features along the banks of the Mississippi River, an important move after the recent tragic drowning of three children in Algiers in my district. As we work to untangle supply chains and navigate climate change, we can't delay critical water management projects. I urge the favorable passage of the WRDA act, H.R. 7776.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate my constituent Mr. Arnold Fielkow on the occasion of his recognition as a 2022 Avodah Award recipient, one of the highest awards granted to a social justice leader in the Jewish Community of New Orleans. Arnold Fielkow with his wife, Dr. Susan Fielkow, and their three boys, Justin, Michael and Steven, moved to New Orleans in 2000 from Wisconsin when Fielkow took the position of executive vice president with the New Orleans Saints organization. Fifteen years ago, after years of working their way through the international adoption process, and after Hurricane Katrina washed away their original documents, the family adopted half-sisters Yana Shira, 9, and Svetlana, 6, from the Ukraine. To this very day, Arnie and his family are watching the turmoil as it unfolds in Ukraine, hoping to find a safe passage for the sisters and their children of his adopted daughters. A leader with a knack for business and an expert coalition-builder, Mr. Fielkow worked with the NFL's New Orleans Saints from 2000 to 2005, In this role, he served as the top senior management official presiding over all administrative and business departments for the organization, including community relations and youth programs. Fielkow was instrumental in enhancing the team's influence--internationally, nationally, and locally--throughout Louisiana. He was the key negotiator achieving a landmark 10-year agreement for Saints facilities here in the state, putting his entire career at risk on such a deal. Fielkow also oversaw tremendous growth in the Saints' youth programming, highlighted by the organization's involvement in the NFL's Junior Player Development program, and the administration of summer youth clinics throughout greater New Orleans. Teaming with the NFL and the Orleans Parish School Board, the Saints were instrumental in returning tackle football to the city's public middle schools. Arnie left the Saints Organization for public service, elected to the position of Councilmember At Large for the City of New Orleans. As a City Councilman, he helped rebuild New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina, introducing legislation to improve education, economic development, public safety and youth recreation across the storm- ravaged city. Fielkow played a major role in ensuring that recreation and athletics remained a significant focus for the youth of the city. Upon stepping down from the City Council in a second term, he served as the President and CEO of the National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA), the official association for all former NBA, ABA, WNBA and Harlem Globetrotter players. Under his tenure, the association achieved an all-time high in membership, built strong partnerships with other organizations, and developed a full menu of member programs and new youth-based national community service initiatives. This new community mission directly led to the creation of the NBRPA's touring youth basketball program and life skills program, which served thousands of at-risk youth in partnership with the National Police Athletic/Activities League and the National Urban League. I am convinced Arnie never sleeps as he develops new ways to assist those in need. His latest innovative program was jointly created by the Arnie D. Fielkow Family and the Edgar ``Dooky'' Jr. & Leah Chase Family Foundation. Both names are well-known among New Orleanians, and their collaboration combines the primary passions of each family as seen through their years of philanthropic service. This program is a definitive nod to Arnie Fielkow's nearly 30-year professional career of sports, Judaism, and relationship-building among the diverse subsets of our city's diverse communities. The Fielkow-Chase Youth Education Initiative is designed to build impactful relationships between multicultural and multifaith communities in Greater New Orleans. Through practical learning and career skills building, this program services high school students interested in pursuing professions within the sports industry, while at the same time allowing the participating teens to learn about one another's history, traditions, and culture. This exciting initiative launched in October 2021. Rooted in community and public service, Mr. Fielkow's current work as CEO of the Jewish Federation of New Orleans is his latest step in a lifelong pattern of bringing people together and doing what is best for the people. Throughout his stellar career, Mr. Fielkow has succeeded in combining his commitment to public service with his love of sports, and always sought to improve access, facilities and programming for our children and young people. I could go on about the experience, honors, and exemplary leadership that this honoree has displayed, but I want to share something that Mr. Fielkow and I are working on together currently. Through the congressional Appropriations Community Project Funding Projects, I was able to secure $3 million dollars for the 9th Ward Stadium Project, whose sole mission is to build a high-quality, multi- use sports recreation stadium for students, schools, and families in New Orleans' 9th Ward. Of course, who other than Mr. Arnie Fielkow is Chair of this organization and is leading the on-the-ground effort to build this facility in a community that has far too long had to travel to other neighborhoods and other schools to use their sports facilities. This stadium will change many lives for the better in New Orleans' 9th Ward. The 9th Ward Stadium effort is just the latest example of Mr. Fielkow's love for New Orleans--and sports--in action, and I am so grateful to have secured this funding for this fantastic project. Congratulations to Mr. Arnie Fielkow on this award. His wife, children, as well as the entire Greater New Orleans Community, are so proud and grateful to have him in our lives.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, today, I want to recognize the extraordinary life of Dr. Johnnie Anderson Jones, Sr., Esq. of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, a Civil Rights Lawyer, and World War II Veteran, at the tender age of 102 on April 23, 2022. Dr. Jones was born November 30, 1919, in Laurel Hill, Louisiana and raised on Rosemound Plantation by his parents, who farmed 73 acres of land but insisted that their son get an education. He attended a two- room schoolhouse and became interested in the law, he said, when a teacher gave him a book by Charles Evans Hughes, then the Chief Justice of the United States. ``While we were out in the fields picking cotton, I would be thinking about what I read in that book,'' Mr. Jones told the Advocate of Baton Rouge. ``I couldn't stand the sight of people picking cotton . . . . Everything it represented.'' Mr. Jones enrolled at Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge, planning to major in industrial education. He was 24 years old, a future civil rights lawyer not yet graduated from college, when he landed on the beaches of Normandy in the D-Day invasion of 1944. He was tasked with unloading equipment during the Normandy invasion. He became the Army's first African-American warrant officer. He was assigned to a unit responsible for unloading equipment and supplies onto Normandy. He nearly died before his ship reached the shore, when the explosion of a mine sent him flying ``sky high into the air,'' he recalled, and onto an upper deck. He again almost died when he came under German sniper fire on Omaha Beach. When Mr. Jones returned home to Louisiana, he was greeted not with a hero's welcome, but rather with all the indignities of segregation in the Jim Crow South. Riding a bus with fellow U.S. servicemembers, Mr. Jones, who was African American, was forced to sit in the back of the coach. He was driving to New Orleans to have shrapnel removed from his neck when a White police officer, entirely unprovoked, pulled him over and began assaulting him. ``He knocked me down and started kicking me,'' he said. ``Things weren't right. `Separate but equal' was unconstitutional, and I wanted to fight it and make it better.'' Mr. Jones did so by enrolling in law school and becoming a lawyer in the early years of the civil rights movement. Mr. Jones was credited with fighting legal battles on multiple fronts of the movement for racial equality. He worked with voter leagues and with civil rights organizations; including the NAACP and the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). He assisted demonstrators who participated in lunch-counter sit-ins. During that time, his car was bombed on two separate occasions. After the 1954 Supreme Court ruling in Brown v. Board of Education, which outlawed segregation in public schools, he helped accompany about 30 Black children to a White elementary school in Baton Rouge, historian Adam Fairclough wrote in the volume ``Race and Democracy: The Civil Rights Struggle in Louisiana, 1915-1972.'' But Mr. Jones played perhaps his most significant role in the 1953 Baton Rouge bus boycott, a long-overlooked event that helped inspire the landmark boycott two years later in Montgomery, Ala., prompted by the arrest of Rosa Parks. Mr. Jones was only two weeks out of law school in June 1953 when the Rev. T.J. Jemison, a founding member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, invited him to represent the organizers of the effort in Baton Rouge. ``I told him, `That's an awfully big suit to fill,' '' Mr. Jones recalled to a reporter in 2015. ``But he said, `Nonsense, Brother Jones, you can do it.' '' The Baton Rouge demonstration was touched off when Martha White, an African-American housekeeper, ignited a controversy by taking a seat in a section of a public bus reserved for White riders. During the eight- day boycott that followed, activists organized carpools that allowed participants to travel to and from work without riding city buses. Eighty percent of the city's bus ridership at the time was African American. The boycott ended with the partial desegregation of city buses, with the front two rows of seats reserved for White people and the last two rows for Black people. While some protesters had hoped for a more dramatic outcome, historians today describe the Baton Rouge boycott as a prototype of others to come. ``Almost unnoticed at the time,'' the Baton Rouge protest ``was a direct precursor of the Montgomery bus boycott,'' Fairclough wrote, ``and an event of major significance in the evolution of the civil rights movement.'' Upon his return to the United States, he resumed his studies and changed his major to psychology, receiving a bachelor's degree in 1949. He received a law degree, also from Southern University, in 1953. Mr. Jones served briefly in the Louisiana House of Representatives in the 1970s. He continued practicing law into his 90s. Mr. Jones was predeceased by his four children, Johnnie A. Jones Jr., Adal Jones, Adair Jones and Ann Jones. Survivors include many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. During his service in World War II, Mr. Jones sustained shrapnel wounds that he would bear for the rest of his life. ``The doctor told me it would really hurt in 75 years, but I wouldn't have to worry about that,'' he bravely discussed. ``I fooled him. It hurts, and I'm still picking it out of my head and arm. A piece came out just above my left eye yesterday.'' He waited nearly eight decades for his service to be recognized with a Purple Heart, receiving the award only last year. The long delay was symbolic of what he saw as the slow move toward justice in the civil rights movement. His heroism will be forever marked in our lives. I am proud to say the life he lived paved the way for me to enjoy the accomplishments I have endured following his footsteps. I will continue to work for the citizens of Louisiana, as Dr. Jones did, always striving to make life better in our community.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the life and career of Olga Armour Jackson. Since 1956, Ms. Jackson has performed one of our most important jobs as a professional educator. She has served at every level, as a Kindergarten Teacher, a Head Start Teacher, a Head Start Pre-Kindergarten Teacher, a Teacher of Gifted Children via Project First, an Adult/GED Instructor, an Adjunct Instructor in Early Childhood Education at the Vocational and Community College level, a Program Manager/Trainer and an Early Childhood Education Consultant. Olga Armour Jackson was born on November 20, 1933, and is the eldest of ten children of the late Reverend Lloyd J. Armour, Sr., and the late Frances Ernestine Henry Armour. Married to the late Lawrence Jackson, Sr., she is mother to Lawrence Jackson, Jr., and Grandmother to Janae' and Jarrell Jackson. Ms. Jackson was educated in the public schools of New Orleans where she attended Johnson C. Lockett Elementary and McDonogh 35 Senior High School. She went on to receive her Bachelor of Arts degree in Kindergarten-Primary Education from Dillard University in 1956 and later earned her Master of Education degree in Early Childhood Education from Tulane University. In the seventies, she furthered her education even more at Tulane University. Ms. Jackson has retired three times in her illustrious career. First, from the New Orleans Public School System in 1977. In 2001, she retired from St. Mark's Community Center where she directed the Child Care Training Program. Finally, in 2015, she retired from Delgado Community College, where she instructed CDA Prep Training for Head Start and childcare teachers in the Greater New Orleans area. She is a passionate Head Start supporter. Ms. Jackson most recently served as a member of the Jefferson Parish Head Start Policy Council as a Community Representative from 2015 to 2021. Her past service has included CDA Advisor and Trainer to Head Start teaching staff, member of the Head Start Policy Council Education committee giving input to policies impacting parental programs in Head Start Centers, and as a presenter at Jefferson Parish Head Start Annual Teacher Workshops. Ms. Jackson has certainly left a lasting impact in the Head Start community across several communities and in various capacities since its inception in 1965. Her dedication to the advocacy and protection of the rights of children is unmatched. She has been active in numerous causes for children and families. Ms. Jackson is Past President of the Louisiana Association for the Education of Young Children; Founder and Advisor of the New Orleans Association of Family Child Care Providers, Inc.; former Advisory Board member of the Louisiana Children's Trust Fund; former Trainer of the WYES Ready to Learn Program; Life Member of the Dillard University Alumni Association and Louisiana Retired Teachers Association Ms. Jackson has had a lasting impact on countless individuals across the Greater New Orleans region and State of Louisiana that can never be measured. I am honored to be able to share her story with the rest of the nation for generations to come so that others may be inspired by her service to others.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to represent southeast Louisiana in Congress, a region that is rightfully famous for its community, its culture, and its incredible food. Around 9,000 restaurants in Louisiana applied for the Restaurant Revitalization Act in the American Rescue Plan. Less than 3,000 received funding. It is clear, the need to replenish this legislation is great and must happen. Today, we will continue to fight for the help of small businesses and families during the pandemic as we pass the Restaurant Revitalization Fund Replenishment Act, providing an additional $60 million for the Restaurant Revitalization Fund. Louisiana thrives on tourism and hospitality, and the restaurant sector is critical in the State's economy. I am so grateful that this bill now includes provisions that I proposed in the bipartisan MUSIC Act, which would include members of the entertainment industry, like live event companies who have yet to have access to industry-specific economic relief funding. I am proud to vote ``yes'' today and stand with small businesses that strengthen and enrich our local economies.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the committed service of Command Sergeant Major Michael Gedeon. CMS Gedeon has been a fearless leader and public servant since he joined the Army on November 24, 1982. Serving 39 years of Active and Reserve Army service, he has shown tremendous courage and dedication to this country. Following Basic Training and Advanced Initial Training, he was allocated to the 1st Signal Battalion in Kaiserslautem West Germany from 1983 to 1985, and afterward served in the 501st Signal Battalion, 101st Airborne Division. CSM Gedeon was deployed from 2004 to 2005 and 2009 to 2010 to Haiti for Operation Uphold Democracy, Operation Joint Endeavor in Bosnia, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Returning to American soil, he entered the US Army Reserve in the HHC second Psychological Operations Group and settled in Parma Ohio. As a life-long learner, CSM Gedeon started his military education with the Combat Lifesaver Course and ultimately ending with the Battalion Pre-Command Course in 2015. Since 1987, he has served in various second POG--non combat--units and rose through the ranks to ultimately become a Command Sergeant Major in February of 2013. The rank of CMS is the most senior enlisted member of a color-bearing Army unit, and serves as a spokesman to address all the issues of soldiers to the unit commander. He also began working as the Director of Instruction in the twelfth/100th CA/MISO Training Battalion. In the latter half of his military career, CSM Gedeon accepted his first Command Sergeant Major assignment for the 16th Psychological Operations Battalion in Fort Sheridan, Illinois in January of 2014. His second assignment was the 11th Psychological Operations Battalion in White Plains, Maryland in April of 2016 to July of 2019 and his final assignment was in February of 2019, as the 2nd Psychological Operations Group Command Sergeant Major. With over 3 decades of experience, the Army has honored CSM Gedeon with multiple awards signifying his dedication and service to this country. His many decorations include the Bronze Star, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal and many others. After a lifetime of service at home and abroad, CSM Gedeon is now retired from duty and currently resides in Cleveland, Ohio where he works at a law firm and parents two young daughters, Paige and Molly. A huge congratulations to Hon. CSM Michael P. Gedeon. We thank him for his service.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate and honor Mrs. Irene Burrus on the joyous and momentous occasion of her 99th birthday on March 31, 2022. Irene has been a supporter, trusted advisor and personal friend of mine since I was a mere kid. I thank God for her and her incredible love, passion, and sincere care for our community at large. Mrs. Irene Burrus has been a tireless volunteer in the New Orleans community for more than 50 years. She is a leader and possesses the skills to involve her friends and neighbors in the causes and organizations she believes in. Her kindness and empathy for others makes her a respected member of her community and has inspired many to follow in her service to others. Irene was married to the deceased John Burrus, who served our country and was awarded the Navy Cross by President Harry S. Truman. She became involved in many causes for our military and veterans throughout the State of Louisiana. Irene worked at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center for over thirty years. She has shared an unwavering love and dedication for the city of New Orleans with everyone she encountered. In 2013, at the age of 89, she volunteered three days of her time to welcoming people from over the world to the activities surrounding Super Bowl XLVII. She is well-known to serve breakfast to law enforcement every Mardi Gras. A stalwart figure in Louisiana's volunteer circles, Irene was awarded the Heroism of the Year award by the Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations and was one of the first five inductees into the Algiers Wall of Fame for her community service to Algiers and New Orleans. Irene's service to causes and organizations is unmatched. She is a member of the Algiers Police Advisory Group, the Welcome Neighbors Organization, the Morning Kiwanis Club, the Algiers Economic Development Foundation, the Tall Timbers Garden Club, the Algiers Development District, the Algiers Charter School Association for Fundraising, the Military Wives Organization, the Old Aurora Neighborhood Association, the Historic French Quarter Easter Parade, the Algiers Republican Women, the Louisiana Republican Women, and the Algiers Courthouse Board of Directors. Throughout her life, Irene has been ``Shero'' to the countless families she has helped along the way. She has showered blessings upon everyone she has loved so deeply, and we are eternally grateful. I wish her the happiest of birthdays surrounded by family and friends and pray we celebrate many more years to come.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, the COVID pandemic has produced a rise in drug abuse, violent crime, and other indicators of collective trauma. These are pressing issues that urgently need resources devoted to them. We must stop wasting precious resources on marijuana offenses. Law enforcement simply cannot afford to chase small-time pot offenders while violent and random crime continues to be on the rise nationwide. The ACLU reports States are wasting billions annually enforcing cannabis laws. This is money, time, and effort better spent on investing in true community safety. Further, Americans overwhelmingly want marijuana reform and 91 percent report that they believe that it should be legalized. Congress is long overdue in marijuana reform and decriminalizing this substance, but we have a long journey ahead to achieve social justice and criminal justice reform. The war on marijuana is a costly relic of the past. Let's vote ``yes'' today so we can build a safer and more equitable tomorrow.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, March is Women's History Month, and I can't let this month pass without highlighting two barrier- breaking public servants. So many women have contributed greatly to Louisiana, but today, I want to take a few moments to celebrate two: Councilwoman Dorothy Mae Taylor and Congresswoman Lindy Claiborne Boggs. A New Orleans teacher and activist, Dorothy led a fight for equality within the segregated school systems while serving as a PTA president. Under her leadership, the city's Black and White schools finally achieved equal funding. While I didn't know it at the time, my educational experience as a boy growing up in New Orleans in the sixties and seventies would improve thanks to the work of Mrs. Taylor. During the civil rights movement, she successfully fought to desegregate New Orleans recreational facilities and register African-American voters. She was a woman of many firsts: the first woman of color to be elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives; the first African- American woman to hold the head of a State department; and the first Black woman and one of the first two women to serve on the New Orleans City Council, in 1986. Councilwoman Taylor worked issues like criminal justice reform before they were popular. After a century of segregation, she was the first councilmember to move on a proposal to ban discrimination in Mardi Gras krewe membership, a move that paved the way for their eventual desegregation. I was elected to the New Orleans City Council in 1994, the year that Councilwoman Taylor retired, but I am so grateful to have known her and to have had an opportunity to learn from her many pearls of wisdom. Though she passed in the year 2000, she left a lasting mark on New Orleans, Louisiana, and our country. Congresswoman Lindy Boggs lived a life of service and warmth, unafraid to break the glass ceiling while overcoming great personal loss. Her husband, the Honorable Hale Boggs, served in Congress for decades until his tragic death in a plane crash. Following his passing, Lindy Boggs replaced him as Congresswoman Boggs and became the first woman ever elected to Congress from the State of Louisiana. It takes a lot of inner strength to do that, strength we also see today from our current colleague serving as a Member of Congress from Louisiana, Congresswoman Julia Letlow. In this very Chamber, Congresswoman Boggs fought tirelessly for equal rights for women and minorities. She also fought to make the House of Representatives more welcoming to women, successfully advocating for a women's-only space in a governing body that was more than 96 percent male. That room still exists today and is appropriately named the Lindy Claiborne Boggs Congressional Women's Reading Room. Throughout her life, Congresswoman Boggs famously opened her home, her kitchen, and her heart to the people of Louisiana and the community she loved so much. She passed in 2013, but we all uplift the memory of Congresswoman Boggs and Councilwoman Dorothy Mae Taylor for advancing issues that they had committed their entire lives to protecting and advancing voting rights, fighting against discrimination, providing healthcare to underserved members of our community, and fighting for humanity for people everywhere. In the spirit of the Honorable Lindy Boggs and the Honorable Dorothy Mae Taylor, we say thank you for your incredible service, and we will continue the drumbeat of these issues here in Congress.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Louisiana has the second highest diabetes mortality rate but only the 11th highest number of cases. The rate of diabetes among Blacks, Hispanics, and Native American adults in the State is disproportionately high as compared to other populations. Insulin is a lifesaving medicine, allowing people to live healthy lives, raise families, and do their jobs. However, many can't afford this life-regulating medicine. Many Louisianans have to pay over $100 a vial in out-of-pocket costs every single month. And some are forced to ration prescriptions, risking complications or death. The people must always come before Big Pharma. Today, we are finally taking action to cut the price of insulin. The Affordable Insulin Now Act would cap out-of- pocket insulin costs for insulin for a month-long supply at $35 and require plans to cover different types of insulin. The bill is a strong move in the right direction to ease the burden, and we must do this now.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, Dr. Henderson Lewis, Jr. has served as the Superintendent of NOLA Public Schools since March 18, 2015, becoming one of the youngest and longest tenured leaders in the 180-year history of public education in New Orleans. With over 25 years of educational experience as a teacher, mentor, assistant principal, instructional coach, curriculum expert, principal, and school district leader, Superintendent Lewis brings a unique, classroom focused perspective to the table. Dr. Lewis first worked for the Algiers Charter Schools Association for six years, serving as the founding principal at Algiers Technology Academy. He taught for seven years at neighboring St. Bernard Parish Public Schools and represented District 9 on the St. Bernard Parish Public School Board for 11 years. Dr. Lewis then went on to become a celebrated superintendent for East Feliciana Parish, which is just north of Baton Rouge. Under his leadership, the district was recognized by the Louisiana Department of Education as second in the state for elementary student academic growth. Throughout his tenure at New Orleans Public Schools, he has not wavered from his mission as a citywide regulator of schools, a protector of family and student rights, and a thoughtful steward of public resources. Superintendent Lewis has been at the helm of NOLA-PS during a pivotal time in the school system's history. He oversaw the 2018 unification of public schools in New Orleans with those schools run by the state of Louisiana. NOLA-PS now has 76 schools under the oversight of the Orleans Parish School Board. Thanks to his team and his leadership, New Orleans community of schools is better structured today than ever before. NOLA-PS established an accountability framework that holds charter schools to high standards. During his tenure, Dr. Lewis has worked to add strong school options to the portfolio, including new and innovative school models, transformations, and replication of successful school models to provide the best possible options for students. During his time as Superintendent, he faced the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. He helped NOLA-PS lead the way nationally by building partnerships, using data to drive decisions, and leading NOLA Public Schools through the COVID-19 pandemic. That work has helped NOLA-PS lead the way nationally when it came to reopening schools with adequate technology, gaining access to COVID testing, and securing access to vaccines. Dr. Lewis also coordinated the district-wide commitment to add the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of required vaccinations for students five years and up. His dedication to promoting equality and equity led to the renaming of 21 school buildings in 2021 to separate the school system of today from the dubious honors bestowed in the past to slaveholders and segregation sympathizers. He also implemented an equity initiative within the school district to continue to advance public education as a right for all children, no matter their race, gender, or economic position. At the heart of Dr. Lewis' work remains his unwavering commitment to the well-being and high-quality education of every child, every day.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, ``Law enforcement is my existence; I have strived to make this world a better place for all of us. Service to humankind is the only way to show appreciation for being chosen by God to live this life.'' Those words are Chief Montroll's mantra every day. Born the youngest child to a doting police officer father and a loving mother who worked in accounting, her parents knew at a very early age that she would live a transformative life. Chief Montroll was born on New Orleans' Eastbank and was a rambunctious youth filled with vigor and determination. She was always known to be the life of the classroom, filled with jokes and playfulness. Academics came easy to her also. Chief Montroll is a graduate of Oliver Perry Walker High School in New Orleans' Algiers area and graduated with a 4.0 average. After her high school graduation, she attended community college and concurrently made the decision to follow in the footsteps of her father and become a police officer. After graduating from the Harbor Police Academy, Melanie was full steam ahead in her career serving the community. Chief Montroll, while holding a full-time law enforcement job at Harbor Police Department, enrolled in Southern University at New Orleans and obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration. Soon thereafter, she secured her Master's Degree in Business Administration from the University of New Orleans. ``Education is the key to doors that cannot be opened normally.'' Within two years of her being employed by the Harbor Police Department, she was promoted to Corporal, which gave her officer supervisory responsibilities within the department. After many awards and accommodations, she was promoted to Sergeant, which included being the Director of Training and the Commander of the Marine division. This position prepared her to, once again, be promoted. This time to Lieutenant, and those responsibilities made her the Commander of the Criminal Investigations and Internal Affairs Division. As a reward for Chief Montroll's hard work and dedication, she was promoted to Assistant Chief of the Harbor Police Department in 2017 with the rank of Captain. The job included Captain of all Platoons, Communications and Surveillance Center, Criminal Investigations and Internal Affairs, Maritime Security Operations Center, Bicycle Division, Training Division, and the day-to-day operations of the Harbor Police Department. She supervised security guards working under the purview of the Harbor Police Department. She was responsible for ensuring adequate and efficient deployment of patrol officers to various sections of the Port of New Orleans as well as overseeing the Port of New Orleans Fireboat Boat and 9-member crew. She was responsible for three civilian staff in charge of emergency operations and homeland security. She was responsible for the fiscal budget for the department and responsible for the Port of New Orleans remaining compliant with MTSA (Coast Guard Regulations) and Commander of Harbor Police Department's Marine Division. She served as the liaison for personnel and time management for subordinate officers between the Harbor Police Department and the Port of New Orleans' Human Relations Division. She coordinated working relationships with outside law enforcement agencies, including local, state, and federal. Under the tutelage of Chief Robert Hecker, she learned the ins and outs of being the Chief of Police. She credits Chief Hecker for being an outstanding mentor and role model in policing. On Monday, February 28, 2022, after a long interview process, Melanie received the call that she was selected to be the next Chief of Police for the Harbor Police Department. Chief Montroll is the first African American female Chief of Police for the Harbor Police Department and one of the first in the State of Louisiana. Chief Montroll is married to Danyell Montroll and has a son Daniel and live in the Greater New Orleans Metropolitan area. She is an inspiring member of our community and I congratulate her on this incredible achievement.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Warren Gene Woodfork, Sr. Warren Gene Woodfork, Sr., the first African American Superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department, entered into eternal rest on Wednesday, March 9, 2022. Chief Woodfork is the eldest of eight children born in Opelousas, Louisiana. He relocated to New Orleans with his family at a young age. Chief Woodfork is a graduate of Joseph S. Clark High School and attended Xavier University of Louisiana. Chief Woodfork was beyond proud to have family and friends following in his legacy of law and law enforcement, Ret. United States Postal Inspector, Samuel Huntley, Jr., New Orleans Police Captain, Michelle Woodfork and United States Magistrate, Judge Dana M. Douglas. Chief Woodfork was appointed in 1985 by the city's first Black mayor, Ernest ``Dutch'' Morial and served a second term under the next mayor, Sidney Barthelemy before retiring in 1991. He was previously employed as a postal clerk and also served his country in the United States Air Force before his 28 year career in law enforcement. Chief Woodfork became the first commander of the Felony Action Squad, which operated for 10 years beginning in 1972. He was also instrumental in making the Police Department's district captains accessible to neighborhood residents and business owners. Chief Woodfork, a product of the Calliope and Lafitte Housing developments, believed in community engagement. He saw the future of community policing by increasing the visibility of top-ranking officers in their district area and facilitating the regular and open exchange of information between the department with the people and businesses. This was a huge shift in tone for the department and was an innovative practice that brought a lot of success. A trailblazer in his own right, Chief Woodfork appointed the first female Deputy Chief of the New Orleans Police Department, Yvonne Bechet, and the first female district commander, Carol Hewitt, who was assigned to the Seventh District. He later appointed Commander Hewitt as the first female commander of the Narcotics Drug Abuse unit in NOPD history. Throughout his administration, Chief Woodfork also sought creative programs and concepts to target the juvenile crime problem and the growing level of violence by including programming in education, music and sports, as the three most important ingredients needed to lead young people away from crime. Chief Woodfork was a graduate of the FBI National Academy and the John F. Kennedy School of Government. He was a member of the Major Cities Chiefs Association (MCAA), Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), International Association of Chiefs of Police, Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), New Orleans Black Organization of Police (BOP) and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement, (NOBLE). Chief Woodfork retired in 1991 to spend more time with his family. Prior to his retirement, he obtained funding for 200 new officers, along with the purchase of additional cars and equipment stating, ``This is a chance for me to give my successor a better start than I had.'' Though he may be gone, I know that Chief Woodfork is still watching over his beloved New Orleans community and beloved family.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise to celebrate our Nation's actions to make healthcare more affordable. Together, we provided more resources for the CDC and State and local health departments to ensure they are prepared and equipped, implementing lessons learned from the pandemic. We confronted our most urgent health crises while taking strides to reduce unacceptable health disparities. We invested in our veterans, focusing on the mental health needs of those who served our Nation. We strengthened biomedical research, providing more funding for the National Institutes of Health and establishing the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health to cure the previously uncurable. We protected the safety of our food and medicine by funding the FDA. The pandemic taught us that no one is safe unless everyone is safe. That is why we increased funding for global health, to work to prevent the next pandemic. With this budget, Democrats are not only making healthcare more affordable for all Americans; we are building a healthier and safer Nation. Helping Working Families with the Cost of Living

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise to highlight the significant investments we enacted to help working families with the cost of living. In a time of great uncertainty and change, people are living paycheck to paycheck or on fixed incomes. Many are struggling just to pay basic bills. Our investments represent a lifeline for working families. By increasing funding for childcare, public schools, and providing high- quality job training, this bill gives more tools to help Americans succeed. Government must serve the people, not the biggest corporations. We provided resources to small businesses and entrepreneurs as they pursue the American Dream. We invested to connect communities to the internet and expand access to affordable housing and homeownership. We strengthened our core services and tackled the root causes of rising prices. One example is by providing $158 million to support the production and delivery of small- to medium-size manufacturers, helping detangle the supply chain and lower costs to consumers. We paid for it by cracking down on big corporations and the wealthiest who are not paying their fair share. This government funding legislation truly delivers for the people.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Ambassador Harold E. Doley, Jr. on his 75th birthday. Ambassador Harold E. Doley, Jr., a native of New Orleans, Louisiana, rang the closing bell of the New York Stock Exchange on February 18, 2022, marking his 50th anniversary of becoming a member. Ambassador Doley began his career in investment banking in 1968. Five years later, at the tender age of 26, he bought a seat on the stock exchange, becoming the first and only African American in history to do so. Ambassador Doley chaired the investment committee of Southern Africa Enterprise Development Fund, SAEDF, a private equity fund. Ambassador Doley also placed the first Black market maker on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Industry peers honored Ambassador Doley as an Outstanding Broker of the Year in 1971, and The Wall Street Journal selected him as Stock Picker of the Year in 1990. Ambassador Doley has been an appointee of five Presidential administrations. In 1982, Ambassador Doley was appointed the founding director of the Minerals Management Service in the Department of the Interior, a department of more than 5,000 employees. MMS represented the second- largest revenue source to United States Government at that time. In 1983, Ambassador Doley was appointed the United States Representative of the African Development Bank Fund, AfDB, headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. The AfDB was able to quadruple its authorized capital by using Ambassador Doley's capital increase formula. At the AfDB, Ambassador Doley secured a AAA rating from the global financial rating agencies, the first AAA rating for an African-based entity. Ambassador Doley was inducted into the United States Small Business Administration Hall of Fame in 2005 and is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations. In 2003, the Doley family funded the Doley Foundation, whose mission is to support education and cultural endeavors that impact the African diaspora. The foundation and its work is an outgrowth of a 1977 study the ambassador commissioned and directed in determining the reliability of using apartheid South Africa as a dependable source for the strategic and ubiquitous metal, platinum. The study can be found at the U.S. Library of Congress today. In 2018, Ambassador Doley received the Imagine Award for Special Recognition in Social Justice in Cape Town for this watershed document. The Doley Foundation replaced the Southern University Law Library in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and funded an NFL study that called on the league to engage with its franchise owners' contracts with minority businesses. A graduate of my alma mater, Xavier University, and the President Management program and Harvard Business School, Ambassador Doley was recently selected as one of 50 Wall Street practitioners interviewed for this piece, Remembering Wall Street: 1950-1980. Ambassador Doley is married and has two sons and two grandsons. A huge congratulations and birthday wishes to this outstanding New Orleans native, Ambassador Harold Doley.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding, and a special thanks to Representative Alma Adams for her tireless efforts on behalf of our Nation's historically Black colleges and universities. HBCUs were built to educate and celebrate the Black community when very few would. At Xavier University in New Orleans, my mother was able to bring six children to class while she finished her college degree. Little did she know that her children and grandchildren would later attend and graduate from the very same university. We are barely 2 full months into the year, but dozens of HBCUs are on high alert amid several instances of racially motivated threats of violence. HBCUs are resilient institutions that can weather any storm but should not have to weather this type of storm. The threats to these higher education institutions are not just disrupting postsecondary education. They are disrupting the very underlying sense of safety and community of the HBCUs. The fact that this has been undermined is perhaps the biggest travesty of all. Let us be clear: These threats are acts of terror, and they must be urgently investigated and prosecuted. We must help foster safety in the HBCU communities.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. We must help foster safety in HBCU communities. Today's resolution is a way that Congress can commit to fighting against hatred and racism and stand with HBCUs.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Octavia Green Robinson. Octavia Green Robinson was born March 19, 1947, in New Orleans, Louisiana to Myrtle August Green and Oliver Daniel Green, Sr. Affectionately known to all as ``Tay'' and ``Big Momma'' Robinson, she left this life on February 6, 2022, at the age of 74. She was surrounded by her family, just like she would have wanted. Octavia grew up in New Orleans' Historic 7th Ward. She is a graduate of Joseph S. Clark Senior High School, Dillard University, and Tulane University School of Social Work where she received her master's degree. She was a decorated Sergeant with the New Orleans Police Department where in her early years she was part of the all-women's team who created Community Relations which became a source of refuge and hope for the people of New Orleans. Octavia moved through the ranks of departments such as Juvenile Division, and others and retired following 45 years of service. Octavia was a proud member of Beautiful Zion Baptist Church, the First District Baptist Association, and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. Octavia leaves her legacy of love for all in the hands of her beloved husband of 47 years Edward J. Robinson, Sr., and her children she so adored, Nicole Robinson (Jafar), and Edris Robinson-Dupard (Joseph), Kimberly Robinson, and Eddie Robinson, Jr. Octavia is also survived by 10 grandchildren, and one great grandchild. Octavia's legacy will forever be ``No One Left Behind''. Octavia was all about family. She took in and cared for many around the world. Her love and caring ways for all will forever live on.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Down in New Orleans where the blues were born, it takes a cool cat to blow a horn. Down in LaSalle and Rampart Street, it is Mardi Gras combo with a mambo beat. Today is Mardi Gras, and as a New Orleanian, this is a special time for our city and our region. It is a joyous time culminating today in the dizzying, colorful explosion that is Mardi Gras Day--Fat Tuesday. Everywhere else, it is just a Tuesday, but in Louisiana it is Mardi Gras--a time for merriment, a time for joy, a time to party, and recognize the culture that makes New Orleans so unique and makes Louisiana so special. It is a one-of-a-kind experience. Some might call this biased, but objectively I think everyone should enjoy and experience Mardi Gras. Today, people from all over the world come together, krewes of all stripes and backgrounds work to pull off a day like none other. After the challenges of isolation and the pandemic, this year's Mardi Gras is a chance for us to reunite, reconnect, and celebrate what truly makes New Orleans, New Orleans--the love, the peace, the culture, and the energy of its people. While I am in D.C. for House business and for the President's State of the Union address, my heart is at home as the Zulu float turns on Jackson Avenue and the oceans of people scream and yell: Throw me something, mister. Our hearts are full of joy. My heart is handing out coconuts at the Zulu parade as we speak, although I am physically in Washington, D.C. People attending balls, costuming, and letting everyone be themselves is what Mardi Gras is all about. It is a time of love, a time of expression, and a time of cultural explosion. Happy Mardi Gras to one, happy Mardi Gras to all, have a safe and happy Mardi Gras. Enjoy the beautiful weather. For all of you watching, I invite you all to come to Louisiana, have a slice, have a piece of Mardi Gras. No matter where you are or where you are from, let's show each other some love this season. And as we say in Louisiana: Laissez les bon temps rouler.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, my great home State of Louisiana is where the tignon laws originated. These laws mandated that Black women of Louisiana cover their beautiful hair, making it illegal to expose our hair. Imagine that. All Americans should have the right to wear their hair that naturally grows out of their heads without fear. We, as Members of Congress, must act to ban any discrimination against natural hair. Whether it is locs, curls, braids, or twists, Black Americans have the right to exist as their authentic selves and wear their natural hair with pride. The CROWN Act would give and defend the right by prohibiting discrimination on the basis of hair texture or hairstyle in employment, education, and several other important spheres. This legislation has been heavily vetted and has already been passed in several States. I am proud to have authored in advance the CROWN Act as a member of the Louisiana State Senate, but not complete the process before I was elected to Congress. This is particularly special for me. For the people of Louisiana and for people across the Nation, Federal action is needed. Studies show that 80 percent of Black women feel they have to change their hairstyles to simply fit in to the workplace, that natural hair is somehow unprofessional. This is unacceptable. I am calling on this Chamber to do the right thing, that all elected officials stand up and do what is right by the people of America. This includes those who may not live in your district and those who have different life experiences. For the overwhelming majority of our country's existence, racial discrimination in its various forms has been legal. Today, we can continue to move this Nation forward. Today, the House will vote to make discrimination based on hairstyles a thing of the past and make our workplaces more inclusive and truly free for people to express themselves.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, this bill would, incredibly and tragically, for the first time make lynching a Federal hate crime in America. Despite more than 200 attempts to pass antilynching legislation through Congress over the past 120 years, lynching has never been designated as a Federal crime. And this isn't just a horror of the past. Unfortunately, we still see these horrible instances. This is reality still today because murders are prosecuted at the local level, this historical injustice meant that 99 percent of lynching perpetrators escaped punishment. This bill is long overdue. Today I will be voting for Representative Bobby Rush's antilynching bill to finally close this dark chapter of our history. We cannot bring back Emmett Till or the thousands of others whose precious lives were lost in the horrible acts of racial terror, but passing this antilynching act is a historic step forward justice and a signal that our Nation will finally reckon with this dark chapter of our history.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the late Loretta Shaw Harrison. Loretta S. Harrison was born in Verret, Louisiana, on February 1, 1956, the seventh child of twelve born to the late George W. Shaw, Sr. and Loretta Louise Moore Shaw. She passed away peacefully around family and friends on February 16, 2022, at the age of 66, after a brave battle with breast cancer. She is survived by three sons she adored, Robert, Roddrick, and Kendrick; two grandchildren; two godchildren; eight of her siblings; and many nephews, nieces, and friends. Loretta was a faithful steward of God with the belief that if you ``put God first, He will grant the wishes of your heart.'' She shared her unwavering love and dedication for God and the city of New Orleans with everyone she encountered. She was a woman with incredible grace and moral fortitude and was a guiding light to her friends and community. Loretta, lovingly referred to as the ``Praline Queen,'' was the chef and owner of the historic Loretta's Authentic Pralines, becoming the first African American woman to own and operate a praline company in New Orleans. She made friends and admirers worldwide through her shop and her long-standing record as a food vendor at the city's biggest festivals, starting with the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Her mother made pralines after church for family and guests visiting their home. By age 8, Loretta was cooking them alongside her mom, using a recipe that went back to her great grandmother. After graduating from Southern University at New Orleans, she went to work at the LSU Medical Library, where she sold pralines to students on the side. In 1978, her big break came when she heard that the Jazz & Heritage Festival put out the call for a praline vendor. She won the contract, sold 1,500 pralines in two weekends, and continued to supply the festival for over 40 years. The success inspired her to leave her job and develop her business full time. Unfortunately, success did not come without a few failures along the way. Yet, she believed in her product and herself. By 1983, she opened her first shop in Jax Brewery. Later, she moved to the French Market, and in the 1990s, by the grace of God, she opened a second, much larger shop and production kitchen in Faubourg Marigny that serves gumbo, seafood platters, stuffed peppers, and calas, as well as pie, cookies, and king cake. She was a proud entrepreneur who advocated for local business owners, cultural and culinary arts. After Hurricane Katrina, she quickly returned to New Orleans and was a vocal advocate for small businesses in meetings with national and local officials. During this difficult time, her business was buoyed by her steadfast belief that anything which can be destroyed can be rebuilt. She took immediate action, changing her business model to include an online storefront and becoming a restaurant for reporters, emergency workers, and volunteers rebuilding the city. She added plate lunches and dishes like gumbo, figuring people needed a place to grab a meal more than sweets. She would continue to evolve her menu and creations. She added praline filling to traditional beignets and even made beignets into sandwiches filled with crab cakes, eggs and bacon, and hamburger patties. A veritable Renaissance Woman, she was a faithful member of Franklin Avenue Baptist Church. She was a wonder to all who knew and loved her, and she will be remembered fondly for her joyful spirit and relentless optimism, which served her well until God called her home. Through her heroic battle with cancer, Loretta has helped shower numerous heavenly graces and blessings upon all of those she loved so deeply, and we are eternally grateful. I was honored and blessed to have known Loretta Harrison, and send my prayers to her beloved family in this difficult time.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the late Walter Ignatius Willard. Walter was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on April 14, 1957, the fifth child of twelve born to the late Elliot ``Doc'' Willard Sr. and Mary Jane Jordan Willard. He passed away peacefully on February 11, 2022, at the age of 64, after a well-fought battle with early-onset Alzheimer's disease. He is survived by the love of his life, Valerie ``Missy'' Sims; their three daughters, Jordan, Jillian, and Jenna; his eleven siblings; and many nephews, nieces, and friends. A proud Purple Knight, Walter attended St. Augustine High School, and prior to graduating in 1975, played trumpet for St. Aug's renowned Marching 100. He not only was the trumpet section leader, but also was the first musician selected to play the band's newly introduced herald trumpet. He then earned a B.A. in political science in 1979 at Tulane University, where his ceaseless love of music led him to join the university's marching band. Walter then ventured to Washington, D.C., where he obtained his J.D. from the American University Washington College of Law in 1982. While in the nation's capital, Walter worked in the Capitol Hill offices of Louisiana Congressman Gillis Long, Senator Russell Long, and Senator J. Bennett Johnston. Walter returned to New Orleans to start his law career, eventually earning a Master of Law degree in energy and environment from Tulane Law School in 1993. Over the course of his 30-year legal career, he was admitted to the bar for the states of Louisiana, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and served as judge pro tempore for the Orleans Civil District Court. As Dr. Martin Luther King once said, ``True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.'' A passionate advocate for justice, Walter spent his career leveraging his judgment and compassion in the pursuit of Dr. King's vision for authentic peace. One of his greatest endeavors in this regard was acting as one of the plaintiffs in the historic Supreme Court redistricting case Chisolm v. Edwards, which set the stage for Louisiana's first African American Supreme Court justice. Walter's remarkable life was characterized by unconditional love and support for family and friends, zealous engagement with community programs and initiatives to improve life for others, and an ardent devotion to God. A lifelong parishioner at St. Raymond Catholic Church, he was an altar boy in his youth and became a member of the church's choir as an adult. Selflessly committed to the betterment of his community, Walter's civic involvements included acting as a voluntary attorney in child neglect cases for the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court CASA program, participating on the mayor's Environmental Affairs Advisory Committee as well as the Task Force on City-Owned Cemeteries, and serving as a member and chair of the New Orleans Historic District Landmarks Commission. Additionally, Walter was a 30-year member of the Sugar Bowl Committee and a nine-year board member of both the Young Leadership Council and Young Audiences of Louisiana organization. A veritable Renaissance Man, one could easily find Walter in a courtroom arguing a case, at Tipitina's jamming out to the Soul Rebels, at the Riverbend coaching his daughters' soccer teams, at the Loyola gym picking up a game of basketball, in the kitchen making omelets, in the yard planting a garden, restoring an old car, or playing with the family's menagerie of pets. He was a wonder to all who knew and loved him, and he will be remembered fondly for his joyful spirit and relentless optimism, which served him well until God called him home. The loss and death of Walter bears witness to the divine and mysterious power of redemptive suffering. Through his heroic battle, Walter has helped shower numerous heavenly graces and blessings upon all of those he loved so deeply, and we are eternally grateful.

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana

Mr. CARTER of Louisiana. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Charles Callan Mary, Jr., M.D., a public servant who was inspired in life by his faith, education and a deep sense of purpose. He served the citizens of Louisiana with professionalism and humility over sixty-one years until his passing on February 5, 2022. He was a devoted husband of 58 years, father of 5, grandfather of 14, brother, uncle, and friend to many. In his advanced studies, he soon recognized a calling that directed him to a pre-med curriculum at Loyola University of the South. Upon completion, he enrolled in Louisiana State University Medical School, graduating in 1961 with a Doctor of Medicine degree. Dr. Mary completed an internal medicine residency at LSU's Medical School and then joined the Department of Medicine. He dedicated 18 years of his early professional life to Charity Hospital and its patients, staff and students, where he served as student, intern, resident, Assistant Clinical Director and then, in 1970 rose to the position of Medical Director and CEO. He felt in his heart this was his calling and Charity Hospital was his home. Gov. Edwin W. Edwards appointed Dr. Mary as the first Commissioner of the newly created State Department of Health, Social and Rehabilitation Services, as well as State Health Officer in 1973. In 1974, Dr. Mary went into private practice, founding the Mary Medical Clinic in New Orleans. He relocated his practice to St. Jude Medical Center in Kenner, and then Elmwood Medical Center in Metairie, where he would continue to practice internal medicine until his semi- retirement in 1997. He continued to see patients on a limited basis until Hurricane Ida in 2021. He also had a live local radio show called ``Ask Dr. Mary,'' which aired every week for over 15 years. Dr. Mary's faith was fundamental to his life's work. Starting as an altar boy at Our Lady of Lourdes and continuing throughout his adulthood, he served and participated in many capacities, including as: a Knight of the Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great; a Knight Commander of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem; a Knight of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta; a recipient of the Order of St. Louis IX (Archdiocese of New Orleans); a member of both the Board of Regents and Board of Trustees of the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.; and a member of the Board of Trustees of La Roche College in Pittsburgh, PA. His involvement did not stop there--he embraced the love of Mardi Gras instilled in him from his father respecting the traditions and celebrations of Carnival. Since his childhood, he remained active in the Knights of Babylon as a rider, an officer, board member and ultimately Captain and Capitan Emeritus after his father's 30 plus year tenure. Like every true New Orleanian, Dr. Mary was an ardent football fan (especially LSU and the Saints), an avid tennis player, a notorious joke teller and a lover of fine New Orleans signature food and libations. The entire New Orleans community is grateful to Dr. Charles C. Mary, Jr. for his dedicated service to the field of medicine, his philanthropic contributions. His legacy will live on.