[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 129 (Wednesday, September 29, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1991]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING OLIVER BIRCKHEAD ON RECEIVING THE FIRST ANNUAL CINCINNATI 
                     BRAIN INJURY ASSOCIATION AWARD

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                            HON. ROB PORTMAN

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 29, 1999

  Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Oliver Birckhead, who 
will receive the First Annual Cincinnati Brain Injury Association 
Award. Mr. Birckhead's community leadership on children's issues will 
be recognized on October 1, 1999, at a dinner that will benefit 
Cincinnati's Children's Hospital Medical Center.
  Traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of acquired disability 
and death among children. Each year, more than one million children 
sustain brain injuries, most commonly from sports injuries caused by 
bicycling, skiing, diving, or playground falls. Brain injury is also 
the most common cause of mortality in young adult Americans under the 
age of 45. Depending on the type and severity of the injury, 
rehabilitation may restore crucial skills that are necessary to lead a 
more normal life.
  Oliver Birckhead is well known for his distinguished career in 
banking. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from Nichols 
College in Dudley, New Hampshire and Stonier Graduate School of Banking 
at Rutgers University. Ollie entered the banking business in 1937 with 
the Peoples National Bank and Trust Company in White Plains, New York. 
In 1942, Ollie entered the U.S. Army Air Corps, where he served until 
1946. He then resumed his career in banking, and was appointed 
Assistant National Bank Examiner in the Second District of New York by 
the Comptroller of the Currency. Ollie joined Chemical Bank in 1948, 
and in 1951, he joined the Central Trust Company, now PNC Bank, in 
Cincinnati. Ollie rose to the position of Vice Chairman and Director of 
PNC until he retired from the Board in 1989. He has served as a Board 
Member of the Union Central Life Insurance Company; the Cincinnati Gas 
and Electric Company (now CINergy); the Manhattan Life Insurance 
Company; and the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
  A committed community leader, Ollie has served on the Executive 
Committee of the Cincinnati Art Museum; as Vice Chairman, Advisory 
Board member, and Life Member of the Salvation Army; and as a board 
member of the Cincinnati Council of World Affairs, the Boys Club of 
Cincinnati, and the Cincinnati Association of the Blind. He also served 
in leadership positions with United Way of Cincinnati. Along the way, 
Ollie made many friends, and I am proud to be among them.
  We congratulate Ollie Birckhead as he receives this prestigious 
honor.

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