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RECOGNIZING BELLE HALL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from South Carolina (Ms. Mace) for 5 minutes.
Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, today I rise in recognition of Belle Hall Elementary School in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. They were recently awarded the National Blue Ribbon School designation by the U.S. Department of Education.
Belle Hall is one of 325 schools in the Nation, one of five in South Carolina, and the only one in South Carolina's First Congressional District to earn this distinction.
Led by their principal, Kevin Conklin, and the assistant principal, Bonita Foster, and numerous dedicated teachers, Belle Hall attributes their success to the tremendous level of support from their families, from businesses, and from the community as a whole in Mount Pleasant.
I would like to recognize the PTA as well who has made significant strides in increasing student learning outcomes for math and reading by raising more than $100,000 a year to supplement one-on-one tutoring for their struggling students.
As we all know, the COVID-19 pandemic has presented enormous challenges for our schools, teachers, and parents. Belle Hall has overcome these challenges and demonstrated excellence despite them.
Recognizing Barbara Melvin's New Position and Recognizing Jim Newsome's
Retirement
Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and congratulate Barbara Melvin on her new position as the new president and CEO of South Carolina Ports Authority.
Barbara will be the sixth leader in the history of the port and the first woman to lead a top 10 U.S. operating container port.
Barbara has been with the South Carolina Ports Authority for over 23 years, and I am confident in her ability to lead our State and our region and our Nation.
Today I also recognize our much beloved outgoing president and CEO, Jim Newsome.
Jim has been the keystone in providing supply chain stability in our State and indeed our Nation and has developed visionary strategies for the port of South Carolina.
For 13 years, Jim oversaw countless projects which extended the port's reach and led to a doubling of container volumes over the last decade.
I applaud Jim Newsome for his service and his incredible career on behalf of the First Congressional District. We thank him for his leadership, his passion, and his direction.
Honoring Curtis Bostic
Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, I rise today to bring attention to an incredible feat under extraordinary circumstances. South Carolina's First Congressional District constituent, Curtis Bostic, was called to action to assist an endangered employee based in Afghanistan. Their communication was over 7,000 miles apart.
Mr. Bostic and his aides at the Christian relief group from Charleston called Remember pulled off an evacuation using intelligence reports from the streets of Kabul, Google maps, and a secure cell phone application to communicate with the employee and his family as they avoided all of the Taliban's roadblocks.
I am happy to report the employee that Mr. Bostic and Remember had been working to assist has arrived in the UAE safely along with his wife and three children who were all under the age of 10.
I applaud Mr. Bostic and Remember for their perseverance as many said the evacuation would be abandoned and it would never happen. They continued fighting for their employee's life and for the safety of his children and their family with ultimate success.
Recognizing Truist Bank and Trident Technical College
Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, I rise today to thank Truist Bank and Trident Technical College for working together to create a new CDL training program this summer in north Charleston.
There is an acute need for truck drivers right now, particularly given the supply chain shortages and the issues we are seeing across the country from COVID-19.
This CDL program will enable students to obtain their certificate in as short as 9 weeks. Trident Technical College will have day and evening sessions for students, and these programs will start about every 3 weeks. I have heard there is already a wait list for the program, and I couldn't be happier to hear it.
I commend Truist Transportation and Logistics Center and Trident Technical College and Mary Thornely for their collaborative effort to fill a much-needed void and gap in our supply chains and for bringing the Lowcountry to the forefront of innovation and problem solving in the private sector during COVID-19.
Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Ms. MACE. Madam Speaker, October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. In the U.S., one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. Almost every one of us knows someone who has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
Sadly and tragically, it is the most common cancer among women worldwide.
On average, every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer, and one woman will die of breast cancer every 13 minutes.
Over three million breast cancer survivors are alive in the United States today.
In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I also recognize South Carolina reporter from the Associated Press, Meg Kinnard, who had the courage to talk about being diagnosed with breast cancer earlier this year. Meg came home just a few days ago from her many treatments, and she is now free from breast cancer. It is a heartwarming story, and I wish we had the research and the resources to ensure every woman who is diagnosed with breast cancer comes home cancer free.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 188
The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
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