[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 117 (Thursday, August 18, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: August 18, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
TRIBUTE TO PAUL ANDERSON
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from Georgia [Mr. Kingston] is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. KINGSTON. Madam Speaker, today, in the city of Vidalia, located
in the First Congressional District, Paul Anderson was remembered in a
Memorial Service. There will be many testaments and many memories of
his spiritual heart, which will continue to beat for many generations.
Because he was a native and life-long resident of Georgia, thousands
of my fellow Georgians will pause today to remember Paul and the
remarkable story of his life--a life that brought him world-wide
attention and acclaim.
Paul Edward Anderson was born on October 17, 1932 in Toccoa, GA. He
suffered from kidney inflammation and rheumatic fever before he was
six, however, he overcame problems with these childhood problems and
was awarded a football scholarship to Furman College in Greenville, SC.
It was at Furman that he began to lift weights. Finding that he had the
physical and mental strengths necessary for such a demanding activity,
he began a routine of training that found him lifting heavier and
heavier weights and starting his own high-protein diet to put on more
weight.
His weight lifting talents helped him to be selected as a substitute
on a United States team going to the Soviet Union to compete against
the best Soviet lifters in 1955 in the first athletic competition held
solely between the two countries since World War II. The heavyweight
lifters were to provide the climax event for the competition.
The top Russian heavyweight lifter tied the Olympic record with a
lift of 330 pounds in the two-hand press. Paul Anderson followed with
an unheard of lift of 402.4 pounds, 20 pounds over the existing world
record. This lift was to catapult him into overnight international fame
as the Strongest Man in the World. Paul Anderson had spent years of
dedication, hard work, and faith to become this overnight success. He
knew all along he could outlift any other human. He only needed the
opportunity to prove it.
This fame was further validated when he broke two world records in
winning the World Championships in Munich later that year. In the 1956
Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, he could clean and jerk over 414
pounds and become the first person ever to lift a combined 1,102 pounds
in the three Olympic weightlifting events. Paul was awarded a gold
medal in the super heavyweight division--a division no American has won
since; he became an instant hero in America, a country that needed a
man of action, of physical power to counter the Soviet Union's
domination in international athletic competition.
He not only brought home the gold medal with him, he brought a
renewed commitment to God. During his Olympic winning lift, he
initially failed at the first two lifts needed to win. On his third--
and final--attempt, Paul related that he asked God for the little extra
help he needed to push the weight up over his head. He made the lift
that literally set the direction for the rest of his life. As an
Olympic hero, he made many demonstration tours. During one of these
tours, he saw youths incarcerated with hardened criminals. He found his
way to fulfill his promise to God by serving others through the
establishment of a youth home for delinquent boys.
With his accomplishments and his size, Paul Anderson was not an easy
man to miss. His olympic size was 5 feet, 9 inches tall, 375 pounds, a
58-inch chest, 36-inch thighs and a 22-inch neck. Using his booming
voice, Paul began a series of speaking engagements that saw him
witnessing for God and then performing some kind of demonstration lift,
such as lifting people from the audience on a table, that would prove
to be a crowd pleaser and help bring in the money needed to get the
youth home started.
In 1957, Paul made the ultimate lift in his hometown when he piled
weights onto a specially constructed table. He lifted this table--a
total of 6,270 pounds--with the strength in his back and legs. This
lift is still listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the
greatest weight ever lifted by a human.
In 1959, he met and married his wife Glenda who shared his vision of
a home for troubled youth. In 1961, they founded the Paul Anderson
Youth Home in Vidalia with the purpose of providing a Christian home
for young men between the ages of 16 and 21 who would otherwise be
confined to penal institutions. They developed a daily routine that
includes spiritual guidance, academic training, physical fitness,
emotional development, social awareness, and work assignments. In 1976,
an on-campus school began operation to give students the opportunity to
earn a high school diploma. The staff at the home provides counseling
for the boys as well as their families.
Since the Paul Anderson Youth Home began, 2,000 young people have
benefited from Paul's philosophy of life: ``Give more than you get and
lend you ability in any way you can to help somebody else''. Teaching
young men to work hard and diligently at any task is a foundation stone
of the home's philosophy. The obligation for carrying out work
assignments instills in the hearts of young people a sense of
responsibility and the personal satisfaction of a job well done. This
social awareness is something that is sorely missing in many of today's
young people and had helped to lead to many of the criminal problems we
see daily.
Paul's wife, Glenda Anderson has overseen its operation. She
supervised the staff and the boys while Paul was on his speaking tours;
and she continued to provide leadership when later health problems
prevented him from his daily activities at the home. Glenda has
provided administrative leadership, given personal counseling and
attention, and maintained day-to-day contact with alumni and families
of the boys. All this while being a mother of their daughter Paula,
born in 1966.
Even as he used his life to help others, Paul Anderson faced a
personal struggle as his health declined because of his battle against
kidney failure. In 1983, Paul's sister gave him a kidney; in 1984, a
ruptured colon caused him to be in a coma for 10 days. In 1986, he
required double hip joint replacements, and then became confined to a
wheel chair. Throughout all these physical ailments, his faith in God
never wavered.
Many public honors were presented to Paul Anderson. These are too
numerous to be listed now, but I will ask that they be entered into the
Congressional Record along with just a few of many articles written
about the life of this dedicated Christian gentleman. With the 1996
Olympic Games coming to Atlanta, Georgia, Paul was the subject of some
recent articles about what has happened since the last time there was
much attention to the Olympics in the State, that time being when Paul
won his medal. I also wish to share two letters sent to Mrs. Anderson
by Billy Payne, the President of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic
Games, and by Lindsay Thomas, the Director of Government Relations for
the Committee. Lindsay served as Paul's Congressman from 1983-1992 and
came to know him well.
Madam Speaker, I rarely utilize printed space in the Record for the
inclusion of such articles, but Paul was such a special individual,
with such a special story, that I would like to make these stories
available to those who want to learn more about this unique person.
Paul Anderson's legacy will be in the thousands of lives that he
touched, in the thousands of lives that he and his family changed. His
words will be available through the video and audio messages he
produced and the books that he wrote. In my congressional office, I
have copies of such materials that tell about the life of Paul
Anderson, including this copy of his autobiography, ``A Greater
Strength'', which tells the story of the real power behind the world's
strongest man.
I look forward to reading this book in its entirety. Before coming to
the House floor tonight, I quickly looked through its contents and two
passages of Paul Anderson's own words caught my eye. Both of these come
from public remarks that he made. After talking about some of his
weight lifting feasts, he told one crowd:
They call me the strongest man in the world. I want you to
know, ladies and gentlemen, that all these things are
secondary in my life. I, Paul Anderson, the strongest man on
the face of the earth, can't get through a minute of the day
without Jesus Christ. The greatest thing in my life is being
a Christian.
At another public event in his hometown, just prior to his kidney
replacement operation, he was being honored on Paul Anderson Day with
the dedication of a granite marker in his honor. In part, the monument
was inscribed with this message: All our strengths come from God: to
achieve--to excel--to succeed--to serve--to share--to forgive--to live
and die--to gain eternal life through Jesus Christ.
When he departed this banquet to face the uncertainty of an operation
that could take his life--or prolong his life of service, Paul Anderson
left the gathering by saying:
If someday you hear that Paul Anderson is dead, he's not
dead. He's gone to live with God. He can't live anymore in
this tired old vehicle. Don't weep for Paul Anderson.
Today, in Vidalia at the Memorial Service and in many other places
where Paul Anderson's accomplishments are known, there will be weeping
by those who were privileged to know him personally or to see the great
good that he did with his God-given talents. With tears in their eyes
and joy in their hearts, they will remember a saying once written by a
reporter who wrote a feature story on Paul: ``Paul Anderson is the
strongest man in the world and he lifts weights too.''
The Kingston Family and our Congressional office extend our prayers
to his wife, Glenda Garland Anderson; his daughter, Paula Dean Anderson
Schaefer; his sister, Dorothy Anderson Johnson; and his aunt, Betty
Anderson Guest. We also send our prayers of thanksgiving to God for
sending Paul Edward Anderson to share his time on earth with so many.
Mr. Speaker, I am including at this point in the Record two letters
and a letter to the editor concerning Paul Anderson and a list of the
medals and honors earned by Paul Anderson, as follows:
Atlanta Committee,
for the Olympic Games,
Atlanta, GA, August 16, 1994.
Mrs. Paul Anderson,
Paul Anderson Youth Home, Vidalia, GA.
Dear Mrs. Anderson: I was certainly very saddened by the
news of Mr. Anderson's death. There are very few people in
this state who have enjoyed the very high acclaim and wide
recognition that Mr. Anderson attained. Being a gold medal
winner in the Olympics and the ``strongest man in the world''
are truly unique accomplishments. The great thing is that Mr.
Anderson took his fame and ability and turned it into a life
dedicated to doing good for others.
I think, often, of the lives that he touched and the many
great inspirations he left for others. To me, the mark of a
truly great person is measured in the person's influence on
others. In Mr. Anderson's case, these persons, too, are doing
great things for the lives of others as well. And so, his
great tradition is passed on from generation to generation.
I will always have fond memories of Mr. Anderson and I
claim some sort of personal friendship with him, although we
were often not in close contact. My acquaintance with him, in
addition to reading about him in the news, goes back to
Athens ``Y'' Camp in the late 1950's when, as a young camper,
I saw him duplicate the world record press that he later
performed in the Olympics.
It was a pleasure this past year when I helped in some
small way to see that he received the very special Olympic
tag that commemorated the year of his great performance. He
was the only person who received such a tag.
I hope you will share my feelings and my condolences with
your entire family and all of Mr. Anderson's many friends. He
will be an inspiration for generations to come.
Sincerely,
Lindsay Thomas,
Director, Government Relations.
____
Atlanta Committee
for the Olympic Games,
Atlanta, GA, August 16, 1994.
Mrs. Paul Anderson
Paul Anderson Youth Home, Vidalia, GA.
Dear Mrs. Anderson: It was with sincere regret that I
learned of the passing of your husband on Monday of this
week, and on behalf of all of the employees of The Atlanta
Committee for the Olympic Games I extend to you and your
family our deepest sympathy.
As a young person in the late 1950's I, like many other
Georgians, shared a special, great admiration and respect for
the many accomplishments attributed to Paul Anderson as an
athlete, and most especially as a gold medal Olympian. As I
have grown older, however, and learned more about Paul
Anderson, the man and humanitarian, those athletic feats,
though impressive by any measure, pale in comparison to his
many contributions to the youth of our society who for
various reasons needed special attention and a friend.
Like the true Olympian that he was, Paul Anderson reached
beyond himself in every phase of life and in doing so set an
example for the rest of us that will live forever. We have
lost a truly great person, but the legacy that he leaves
behind is one that can only be measured in Olympic
proportions. In his memory it would be most appropriate that
those of us who remain strive to follow that legacy and touch
the lives of our fellowman in the positive way that Paul
Anderson demonstrated for us.
God bless you and your family, and thank you for sharing
your wonderful husband and father with us.
With best regards, I am
Sincerely,
William Porter Payne,
President and Chief Executive Officer.
____
[From the Advance-Progress, Sept. 16, 1992]
Paul Anderson Is the Strongest Man in the World and He Lifts Weights
Too
With the announcement that Atlanta will host the 1996
Olympics, newspapers throughout the state, including our own
Advance-Progress, have begun running numerous articles
concerning the upcoming games. Though a good four years away,
the impact these games will have on our state has already
begun to take shape, creating a tremendous interest among
Georgians. With this in mind, I thought the local readers
would enjoy learning more about Vidalia's own Olympic hero
Paul Anderson.
Paul Anderson was born in 1932 in the midst of The Great
Depression in Toccoa, Georgia, where he spent the majority of
his early life, graduating from Toccoa High in 1949. In 1952,
at twenty years of age, the young man from Toccoa appeared on
the weightlifting scene where he immediately gained the
attention of lifters throughout the United States, breaking
records that had taken old time lifters dozens of years to
establish. Anderson, who stood 5'9'' tall, weighed around 300
pounds and sported huge 21'' biceps, 16'' forearms, 58''
chest, and massive 34'' thighs. Those who witnessed his lifts
in person, described the young man as a new strength
sensation. The stories coming back from his competitions were
so amazing that for some time many of the magazines refused
to believe he actually existed.
Between 1952 and 1955, however, magazines and newspapers
throughout the United States and then overseas saw the new
sensation in person as he quickly took control of the
heavyweight division, smashing record after record. Lifting
magazines described the young man as one of the greatest
lifters of all times.
Paul gained worldwide attention, however, in 1955, when he
shattered the egos of the Russians, who had ruled the
heavyweight division for years. Paul's performance behind the
iron curtain in Moscow was far beyond a simple win. He
dominated the competition with such ease that the Russian
newspapers labeled him a wonder of nature. One elderly
Russian stated, ``I can die happy now, I have seen the
greatest thing on earth''. Throughout the world Paul Anderson
was recognized unquestionably as the strongest man in the
world. Paul continued his march through the record books
right up to the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, where,
despite a horrible fever, he won a gold medal in the then
heavyweight division.
1996 will mark forty years since Paul's Olympic
performance. It also marks forty years since an American has
won a gold medal in the heavyweight division. Nine Olympic
games have passed since Anderson's performance, yet the ever
elusive Olympic gold medal remains only a dream to the many
American heavyweight lifters who have trained and competed
for the last four decades.
For many athletes this would be their top achievement. For
Paul Anderson, however, his life had only just begun. The
gentle giant from Georgia yearned for more, and in 1961 Paul
and his wife Glenda established The Paul Anderson Youth Home
in Vidalia.
For over thirty years The Paul Anderson Youth Home has
provided thousands of homeless and troubled teenagers, most
of whom would otherwise be in juvenile or adult institutions,
a home where academic training, physical fitness, emotional
development, and spiritual guidance are instilled. Their
unique approach has been duplicated in numerous other homes
throughout the nation by those wishing to accomplish the
tremendous results achieved by the home in Vidalia. The
Andersons, who are devout Christians, attribute their success
to the spiritual guidance they give to the young men. One
only has to talk to present and past students to realize the
wonderful results the Vidalia home achieves.
Anderson is known throughout this country and even the
world, however, not just for his athletic abilities, but for
the tremendous Christian values he has carried with him over
the years, and for his untiring devotion to helping his
fellow man. That untiring devotion had him traveling untold
hundreds of thousands of miles where he appeared before as
many as five hundred audiences a year. During those
appearances Anderson would astound his audiences as he lifted
objects that no other human could lift and then, with a
booming voice that very rarely required a microphone, shared
with his audiences his love of God, country and the free
enterprise system.
Over thirty years later one only has to ride out highway
297 to the north end of town where the beautiful Paul
Anderson Youth Home stands to see that one man can make a
difference, and that true heroes do, indeed, exist.
Anderson's unselfish giving and his tremendous spiritual
devotion has propelled him into a category very few athletes
ever achieve.
Though Anderson plays down the many records he set years
ago, instead wanting to discuss the youth home and his many
Christian achievements, lifting experts throughout the world
continue to discuss his legendary strength. Many believe Paul
Anderson is the strongest man who has ever walked on earth.
This was no more apparent than in February of this year when
at the first ever held Power and Strength Symposium in
Orlando, Florida, his peers recognized him as the strongest
man of the century. One only had to be there in person to
feel the tremendous respect these athletes hold for the man
they have loved for years. Once again, however, the talk
around the tables after Anderson left for his return trip
home was not just of his athletic strength, but centered
around the tremendous Christian principles he has shared with
untold thousands over the years.
Those close to Anderson have adopted a saying once written
by a reporter who spent some time with Paul for an upcoming
feature story. Though the reporter's name has long been
forgotten, his words have not: ``Paul Anderson is the
strongest man in the world and he lifts weights too.''
Sincerely,
Larry Coleman.
____
paul anderson
1955--Won World Championship in Munich, Germany, by
breaking two world records.
1955--Appointed Lieutenant Colonel, Aide De Camp,
Governor's staff by Georgia's Governor Marvin Griffin.
1955--Georgia's Governor Marvin Griffin proclaimed July 5
``Paul Anderson Day.''
1955--Goodwill Ambassador for America through the United
States Information Service.
1956--Olympic Gold Medalist, last American to win in the
super heavyweight division.
1961--Founder of Paul Anderson Youth Home, alternative to
juvenile and adult penal institutions for boys between the
ages of sixteen and twenty-one.
1964--Helms Athletic Foundation--Helms Hall of Fame Award.
1966--Appointed Lieutenant Colonel, Aide De Camp,
Governor's staff by New Mexico's Governor Jack M. Campbell.
1966--Named one of Five Outstanding Young Men in Georgia by
Georgia Jaycees.
1970--Governor Jimmy Carter appointed him to State Physical
Fitness Council.
1971--District Toastmasters International Georgian of the
Year.
1974--Inducted into the Georgia Athletic Hall of Fame.
1975--Appointed member Advisory Committee on Juvenile
Justice and Delinquency Prevention by Governor George Busbee.
1975--Presented Branch Rickey Memorial Award, highest honor
presented to laymen by Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
1977--Recipient of the Golden Plate Award presented by the
American Academy of Achievement.
1983--Appointed Lieutenant Colonel, Aide De Camp,
Governor's Staff, by Georgia's Governor Joe Frank Harris.
1983, May 25--Citizens of Toccao, Georgia, placed a
permanent marker at his original home in Toccoa.
1983, May 25--Governor Joe Frank Harris proclaimed ``Paul
Anderson Day'' in Georgia.
1983, May 25--Congressional Record paid tribute to Paul
Anderson.
1983--Granted the Honorary Presidential Sports/Fitness
Award for his contribution to sports in the USA by President
Ronald Reagan.
1984--National Powerlifting Hall of Fame.
1984, May 30--Awarded Father of the Year by Southeast
Farther's Day Committee.
1986, October 5--Declared ``Paul Anderson Day'' by Governor
Joe Frank Harris in commemoration of the Paul Anderson Youth
Home's twenty-fifth anniversary.
1990, June 29--Awarded Honorary Doctorate of Education from
Piedmont College, Demorest, Georgia.
1992, February 14--Inducted into the Fellowship of
Christian Athletes Hall of Champions.
1992, February 29--Presented ``Strongest Man of the
Century'' award at the 1992 USA Power and Strength Symposium.
Awarded keys to cities including: Memphis, Tennessee;
Salisbury, Maryland; Anniston, Alabama; Gainesville, Georgia;
Toccoa, Georgia; Shreveport, Louisiana.
Listed in ``Guinness Book of World Records'' ``. . . raised
the greatest weight ever lifted by a human--6,270 pounds.''
Member National Board FCA.
Author of three books, weightlifting courses, and poetry,
as well as numerous newspaper and magazine articles.
Philanthropist whose speaking engagements and weightlifting
exhibitions have provided a majority of the funding for the
Paul Anderson Youth Home.
Highly acclaimed speaker for churches, Christian
organizations, colleges, universities, high schools,
corporations, and civic organizations.
Serves on the Board of Advisors of the Fellowship of
Christian Athletes (FCA).
HEALTH CARE REFORM AS IT AFFECTS THE 85 PERCENT WHO ARE NOW COVERED--
THOUGH NOT FULLY
The SPEAKER pro tempore. (Mrs. Thurman). Under a previous order of
the House, the gentleman from California [Mr. Becerra] is recognized
for 5 minutes.
Mr. BECERRA. Madam Speaker, I was going to devote a few minutes to
talk about health care reform, but rather than do that I would like to
just address some of the points made by some of my colleagues a little
earlier today.
First, let me say a little bit about health care reform. I want to do
that because I look at things from the context of what has happened to
my family. I will speak most specifically about my mother and, if I
have a chance, I will talk about my child, who is now about 15 months
old.
I know a few of the gentlemen, my colleagues who came up before me,
talked about the system and how it does not work. I think all of us
would agree there are things about our health care system that do not
work and dramatically do not work. But when one of my colleagues, Mr.
Saxton, from New Jersey, mentioned that 85 percent of the system works
well because 85 percent of Americans are covered and 15 percent are not
covered and it is that 15 percent that we have to address, this is a
very major point. The 85 percent or so of the people who are insured
are not getting the best type of coverage they deserve, whether it is
my mother or someone working out there in the world or someone working
in a business.
Talk to them, and they will tell you. They are right now concerned
about whether or not they are going to keep their coverage or whether
or not they are going to be able to afford it. That is what we have to
address. Not just the 15 percent of America, which constitutes 39
million Americans, who are not insured, though we have to take a
comprehensive approach to reform of our health care system.
Why do I say that? Well, I look at my mother. Years ago she had an
operation in which she was in and out of the hospital within 24 hours.
She was receiving some treatment because she was having calcification
in her ears and was losing some of her hearing.
The doctor said it was a fairly routine procedure. It was surgery,
they did have to go inside. But they said if all goes right, she would
be out within 24 hours. Well, sure, she was in and out within 24 hours,
with a bill of about $13,000. Now my mother had health insurance
because my father was employed as a laborer for about 27 years of his
life in road construction and he had partial coverage, 50 percent
coverage--50 percent of $13,000, which they had to pay out of pocket is
a lot of money for anyone, especially for someone who never earned more
than $20,000 or $23,000 in his or her life before retirement. When my
mother tried to deal with the situation and figure out why it was
$13,000, she called, and she called not just the hospital but she had
to call the insurance company. I must tell you my mother quickly
learned what it is like to be an attorney, because she had to become
her own attorney because she did not want to spend another $7,000
trying to, now, get an attorney to help her resolve the problems with
her bill.
Interestingly enough--and I am her son, so she calls her son, who
happens to be an attorney--when we finally had a chance to get access
to that bill, let me tell you it was like extracting teeth to finally
get the insurance company to give us copies of the bill.
I see why we have people complaining all the time about $5 aspirin
tablets, because some of the expenses, some of the charges on that bill
were ludicrous. Yet, she is someone who is covered. She is considered
among the 85 percent of Americans who receive health insurance because
she is able to get it through my father's employment, now in
retirement.
Yet, can she afford to pay out $7,500, $6,000, even $1,000 in any
given year for health care? It is tough. It is tough for anyone.
Now, put on top of that the fact that most people are seeing their
deductibles go up, their copayments go up, their overall cost of
premiums go up, and you see that the 85 percent who are covered do not
have it easy.
On top of that, take a look at the 12 to 14 percent rate of inflation
for medical costs, and you see something is wrong when the rate of
inflation overall is about 2 or 3 percent.
Something is wrong.
Then I look back at my father's experience, and I had a chance to
work with him when I was trying to pay my way through college, working
out in road construction as well, more and more you find people who are
working, working men and women who are constantly having to negotiate
down their salaries to maintain their health care benefits.
That to me is not a sign of a system that is working. That is why we
have to change, not only for the 15 percent who are not insured but for
everyone, because sooner or later those who are insured are going to
find themselves in the category of those who are not.
Interestingly enough, one of the reasons we have gridlock in this
House is because people are saying, mostly on the other side of the
aisle, that we cannot have what is being called the employer mandate
or, as some would call it, shared responsibility, where the employer
would pay a percentage, normally 80 percent, and the employee would pay
a percentage, 20 percent, of the insurance.
Strangely enough, we are having a debate over something that goes on
in America every day. Most of those 85 percent of Americans who are
covered right now by insurance get it through their employer. They get
it because the employer pays a good percentage of it right now,
employer mandate or not. That is why I think what we have to do is
understand that there is some good and some bad and make sure we deal
with it for everyone, not just those who have it now.
I would hope that the debate on health care deals with those small
issues, whether it is not those who--those who are not covered or the
issue of those who are seeing too much bureaucracy, and we see there is
a greater good in getting universal coverage.
____________________