[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 37 (Tuesday, March 9, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E370]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO EDWARD PATZ

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. PETER J. VISCLOSKY

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 9, 1999

  Mr. VISCLOSKY. Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to pay tribute 
to an outstanding citizen of Indiana's First Congressional District, 
Mr. Edward Patz. On March 27, 1999, Mr. Patz, along with his friends 
and family, will celebrate his retirement from the Pipefitter's Local 
Union 597. This reception will take place at the Villa Cesare in 
Schererville on March 27, 1999.
  Ed Patz has dedicated a substantial portion of his life to the 
betterment of union members and the community of Northwest Indiana, as 
well as the entire state.
  Mr. Patz's distinguished career in the labor movement has made his 
community and nation a better place in which to work and live. For more 
than forty years, Mr. Patz has served as an important figure in Local 
#597. He has held several positions throughout his tenure, but none as 
important as Business Agent, a position from which he retired on 
January 1, 1999.
  Mr. Patz began his involvement with Local Union 597 in 1956, through 
his Pipefitter Apprenticeship with the Robert Gordon Corporation. Ed 
Patz was the top apprentice in the state of Indiana and won the state 
apprenticeship contest on November 23, 1960. In the same year, Mr. Patz 
graduated from the apprenticeship program and attained the rank of a 
journeyman. In 1983, Mr. Patz was elected to the Pipefitter's Local 
Union 597 executive board, where he served a three-year term. Mr. Patz 
was elected to the position of Business Agent in June of 1986, where he 
remained until his retirement in January 1999. Ed Patz served three 
consecutive two-year terms as Secretary-Treasurer for the Northwest 
Indiana Building Trades Council, and was involved as a committee 
chairman and/or member of numerous committees associated with the 
Building Trades Council. Ed Patz has devoted his career toward the 
expansion of labor ideals and fair standards for all working people.
  On this special day, I offer my heartfelt congratulations to Ed Patz. 
His large circle of family and friends can be proud of the 
contributions this prominent individual has made. His work in the labor 
movement provided union workers in Northwest Indiana opportunities they 
might not have otherwise had. Mr. Patz's leadership kept the region's 
labor force strong and helped keep America working. Those in the 
movement will surely miss Mr. Patz's dedication and sincerity. I 
sincerely wish Ed Patz a long, happy, and productive retirement.

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