[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 64 (Monday, May 22, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E801]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      JOHN RIGAS BIRTHDAY MESSAGE

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL BILIRAKIS

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, May 22, 2000

  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, Mr. John Rigas, of Coudersport, 
Pennsylvania, recently celebrated his 75th birthday and 48th year in 
the cable business. I have come to know him well over the years--
unfortunately not seeing enough of him.
  The son of Greek immigrants, he was born in an apartment above his 
parents' restaurant in a small town in rural western New York. After 
receiving a degree in management engineering, he returned home to help 
out with the family business. However, John Rigas had other aspirations 
and he accepted a position as a Sylvania plant engineer in Emporium, 
Pennsylvania. After borrowing from family and friends, he purchased the 
local movie theater in nearby Coudersport.
  To protect his movie theater business, he invested $100 in a cable 
television franchise to provide signals to a rural community with 
little or no off-air reception. Flash forward several decades. This 
fledgling enterprise became Adelphia, the Greek word for brother, which 
John Rigas and his family have turned into one of the nation's largest 
telecommunications providers, serving more than 5 million customers in 
30 states, including a significant presence in Florida.
  John kept the company headquarters in Coudersport, a community of 
about 2,500 where he purchased the old high school on Main Street and 
converted it into Adelphia's corporate headquarters. John's love of 
Coudersport and its residents transcends almost everything in his life 
except for his family. That's why he has chosen to remain in that 
community. Now, they have added Adelphia Business Solutions, a 
telephone subsidiary and the company provides high speed cable modem 
connections to the Internet, digital programming tiers, and long 
distance telephone service.
  This year marks the fourth anniversary of the 1996 Telecommunications 
Act. It is fitting that the exciting new services made possible by this 
act are being developed and delivered by the entrepreneurship of people 
like John Rigas. Happy birthday, John, and thanks for fulfilling the 
American dream in a way that provides exciting new telecommunications 
services throughout our country.

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