Sam Graves

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Hunter E. Stoll, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 255, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Hunter has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the many years Hunter has been involved with Scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Hunter E. Stoll for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize St. Joseph Christian School located in St. Joseph, MO. This school will be celebrating its 20th anniversary of service to the community on Thursday, November 15, 2007. As a staple of the community throughout the years, the school has experienced growth and expansion with the community it serves. From humble beginnings, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Gregory founded the school with 10 teachers and 135 students enrolled. Since then, St. Joseph Christian School has become accredited with the Association of Christian Schools International and the Committee for Accredited Schools Non-public, through the University of Missouri at Columbia. Currently, St. Joseph Christian School serves over 340 students, coming from 60 different churches in the community, and offers classes starting from preschool to 12th grade. This school's curriculum incorporates biblical and scholarly learning, in order to help students both achieve academic success and further their spiritual development. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in recognizing the St. Joseph Christian School. The educational and spiritual services that they have provided over these 20 years have been fundamental to shaping student's lives. Let us use St. Joseph Christian School as a powerful example of the lasting commitment to education and faith.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, might I inquire if Chairwoman Norton has any other speakers.

Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3495, introduced by the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Corrine Brown), creates a National Commission on Children and Disasters. First, I thank Chairman Oberstar and Chairwoman Norton for working with us to improve this legislation. I believe our bipartisan efforts were necessary to ensure a fair and balanced commission. I think it has resulted in a much better legislative product. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3495 establishes a 10-member commission to examine the needs of children and disasters. The commission is directed to report its findings and conclusions and recommendations to the President and the Congress, as Chairwoman Norton pointed out. The bill specifically directs the commission to build upon the investigations of other entities to avoid an unnecessary duplication of effort. For example, last Congress the House created the Select Committee to Investigate Hurricane Katrina. Former Subcommittee Chairman Bill Shuster served on the select committee. In its final report, the select committee made a number of findings with respect to children. In response to this report, we passed the Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act, which included provisions creating a national emergency child locator center and a national emergency family registry and locator center. Finally, H.R. 3495 requires both State emergency managers and local emergency managers to be represented on the commission. This requirement ensures the representation on the commission of the people who may very well be responsible for implementing its recommendations. Mr. Speaker, I support this legislation. I encourage my colleagues to do the same. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Mladen Kojic, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 9, and by earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Mladen has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the years Mladen has been involved in Scouting, he has earned 34 merit badges and held numerous leadership positions, serving as Assistant Senior Patrol Leader, Librarian, Assistant Patrol Leader, Chaplain's Aide and Quartermaster. Mladen is also a Firebuilder in the Tribe of Mic-O-Say. For his Eagle Scout project, Mladen poured a concrete slab sidewalk and landing area in front of the Methodist church's new elevator entrance in North Kansas City, MO. Mladen has also earned several special awards, including the 50 Mile Award and World Conservation Badge. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Mladen Kojic for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Zach Kinne of Eagleville, Missouri. Zach is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of leadership by being elected to serve as 2007-2008 National Future Farmers of America President. Zach was among six individuals selected from a field of 40 to hold a national office. He was later chosen and presented as President at the 80th National FFA Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana. As president, this position will require Zach to travel more than 100,000 miles, visit approximately 40 states, and participate in an international experience tour to Japan. Zach will also be responsible for providing personal growth and leadership training for students, setting policies that shape the future of the organization, and promoting agricultural literacy. Currently, Zach attends school at the University of Missouri in Columbia. There, he is involved in many student organizations including College of Agriculture Student Development board, MU Alumni Association Student Board, Agriculture Economics Club, Collegiate Farm Bureau, College of Agriculture Learning Improvement Committee, and the Missouri Department of Education Preparatory Taskforce. Zach has been very active as a member of FFA. Over the years, Zach has been involved he has participated in a Supervised Agricultural Experience, which required producing and selling registered Angus seed stock bulls. Zach was also selected as a state winner and national semi-finalist in prepared speaking, and was named State Star in Agricultural Placement. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Zach Kinne for his accomplishments with the Future Farmers of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of President for the 2007-2008 calendar year.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Benjamin Oas, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 9, and by earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Ben has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the years Ben has been involved in Scouting, he has earned 26 merit badges and held numerous leadership positions, serving as Patrol Leader, Chaplain's Aide, and Quartermaster. Ben is also a Warrior in the Tribe of Mic-O-Say. For his Eagle Scout project, Ben constructed a permanent cabinet to be used for storing valuables for the Community Clothes Closet in Warrensburg, MO. Ben has also earned the Ad Altare Dei special award. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Benjamin Oas for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Scott Fagan, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 9, and by earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Scott has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the years Scott has been involved in Scouting, he has earned 24 merit badges and held numerous leadership positions, serving as Quartermaster, Librarian, Patrol Leader, and Historian. Scott is also a Firebuilder in the Tribe of Mic-O-Say. For his Eagle Scout project, Scott renovated the back area of an office building at Elmwood Cemetery in Kansas City, MO that can be used for meetings and socials for the Elmwood Cemetery Society. Scott has also earned the Mile Swim special award. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Scott Fagan for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Ryan Daniel Foley of Gladstone, Missouri. Ryan is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 180, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Ryan has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Ryan has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Ryan Daniel Foley for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Chris Wilson of Kansas City, Missouri. Chris is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 180, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Chris has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Chris has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Chris Wilson for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Steven Michael Ashlock of Liberty, Missouri. Steven is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 180, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Steven has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Steven has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Steven Michael Ashlock for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Daniel Bailey of Kansas City, Missouri. Daniel is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 180, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Daniel has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Daniel has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Daniel Bailey for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Marc Huber of Kansas City, Missouri. Marc is a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 180, and earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Marc has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Marc has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Marc Huber for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I would like to state for the record my position on the following votes I missed due to flooding in my county. On Monday, October 15, 2007, I was tending to personal matters and thus missed rollcall votes Nos. 961, 962, and 963. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye'' on all votes.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Mitchell Joseph Creagh, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 303, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Mitchell has been very active with his troop, participating in many scout activities. Over the many years Mitchell has been involved with scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Mitchell Joseph Creagh for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Matthew McEwen, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 1220, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Matthew has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the many years Matthew has been involved with Scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Matthew McEwen for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Aaron Paul Gotzon, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 260, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Aaron has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the many years Aaron has been involved with Scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Aaron Paul Gotzon for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Lee Michael Carpenter, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 260, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Lee has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the many years Lee has been involved with Scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Lee Michael Carpenter for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Christopher Chase Parrish, a very special young man who has exemplified the finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 260, and in earning the most prestigious award of Eagle Scout. Christopher has been very active with his troop, participating in many Scout activities. Over the many years Christopher has been involved with Scouting, he has not only earned numerous merit badges, but also the respect of his family, peers, and community. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in commending Christopher Chase Parrish for his accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of America and for his efforts put forth in achieving the highest distinction of Eagle Scout.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly pause to recognize Melissa Hensley, of Milan, MO. Melissa Hensley is the recipient of the Missouri American Star of Teaching Award. Melissa serves as a Literary Coach for Milan C-2 Elementary in Milan, MO. She works closely with other educational professionals and parents to increase students' reading abilities. Melissa also acts as a mentor to beginner teachers and represented Missouri schools by presenting at the National Reading First Conference in Reno, NV. Currently, she is working on completing her master's degree in Reading. Each year, American Stars of Teaching receives over 4,000 nominations for this award. From this, the organization picks one educator from each state. This year, Melissa represented Missouri by earning the American Star of Teaching Award. Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join me in honoring Melissa Hensley whose dedication and service to the people of Milan has been truly exceptional.

Mr. GRAVES

Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, we have heard now from folks talking about Louisiana, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, myself from Missouri; and I think folks can see that we have a lot of areas in the United States that are very economically distressed, and for various reasons. Every one of those regions, and, traditionally the Appalachia region, are distressed for different reasons. This bill allows these commissions to leverage public and private dollars. It is a great partnership. Mr. Speaker, again, I want to thank the chairman for allowing me to add counties in northwest Missouri. It is very important to the folks there. I know he has been working on various aspects of these commissions for a long, long time. I appreciate his expertise and his willingness to be very open in this process and work with us. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. GRAVES. I don't. Just my own final words before the chairman closes.

Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I now yield to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Boustany). He has worked tirelessly for his district. And since, not so much Hurricane Katrina, but Hurricane Rita, which devastated his district, he has been working very hard to bring some economic development to his district. I yield such time as he may consume for his remarks.

Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I would yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the Regional Economic and Infrastructure Development Act of 2007 reauthorizes two economic development commissions, the Delta Regional Commission and the Northern Great Plains Regional Commission. The bill also creates three new commissions, the Southeast Crescent Regional Commission, the Southwest Border Regional Commission and the Northern Border Regional Commission. First, I want to thank Chairman Oberstar and Subcommittee Chairwoman Norton for working with me to add several counties in northwest Missouri to the Northern Great Plains Regional Commission and for working with other members of the committee to add their counties to the bill as well. I appreciate it very much. The Northern Great Plains Regional Commission borders my district in the north and the west. The counties added by this bill are contiguous to the counties in the commission. Additionally, these northwest Missouri counties are experiencing problems similar to the counties in the commission already, yet they have higher levels of economic distress. The Northern Great Plains Regional Commission will set the stage for economic growth by creating an effective Federal-State partnership for attracting new businesses, creating new jobs and developing the infrastructure in northwest Missouri. The commission will encourage local economic development by making use of local resources for the benefit of the community. The commission is designed to successfully leverage other public and private funds, providing northwest Missouri with a very valuable economic development tool. Economic development plays a very vital role in maintaining our rural way of life by keeping folks in those communities and keeping that culture alive. A major component to economic development is the build- out of broadband services throughout many regions in the country. No matter where you live, broadband can bring a world of opportunities and possibilities to your doorstep. It is imperative to our rural way of life that we push broadband out to every corner of the country. Where you live should not limit your opportunities for education, commerce, and medical care. Many citizens in rural America's small communities do not have broadband access at a reasonable cost. It should be available to everyone no matter where they live at a reasonable rate. Through this legislation and other efforts that my colleagues and I have taken on, grants will be available to further establish an infrastructure that can support this important tool to rural economic development. Additionally, I must commend two members of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Mr. Hayes and Mr. Boustany, who have been tireless advocates for their districts. I would like to recognize Mr. Hayes for his dedication to stimulating economic development and job promotion in the State of North Carolina and leading efforts to create the Southeast Crescent Authority. Additionally, he has championed efforts to recruit new industry and create new jobs while sharpening the competitive proficiency of existing industries in the Eighth Congressional District of North Carolina. Mr. Boustany has also worked tirelessly to promote development and create opportunities for communities in his district and has been a leader on the issue for the entire State of Louisiana. Again, thank you, Chairman Oberstar and Chairwoman Norton for working with Members and working with me to bring this legislation to the floor. Mr. Speaker, I know we have a few speakers out there, so I will cut mine short. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.