[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 172 (Wednesday, December 12, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2264]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  DENNIS O'DELL; VETERANS COME FIRST!

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                            HON. BOB FILNER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 11, 2001

  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, I rise today to recognize and 
honor Mr. Dennis O'Dell of San Diego County who has been selected as 
the winner of the 2001 Maxine Waters Award for Courage, to be presented 
by AMVETS Post #66 on January 12, 2002 in Cathedral City, California.
  Dennis O'Dell is a resident of my Congressional District. He was born 
in September, 1949 in Maryville, Missouri to Doris V. Shell O'Dell and 
Norman C. O'Dell. His father was awarded the Purple Heart, the Bronze 
Star, and the European-African-Middle East Theater Campaign Medal, 
along with others honors. Dennis was raised in El Segundo, California 
and attended El Segundo High, El Camino College in Torrance, and Penn 
Valley College in West Los Angeles.
  He served in the United States Marine Corps and received his 
honorable discharge in 1969. He began a career as a policeman in 
Missouri in 1979 and, after being wounded three years later, he became 
a business owner in Missouri.
  However, his roots were calling him back to California, and he 
returned in 1983, working for a Security Company in Beverly Hills and 
for the Santa Monica Airport Police. In 1986, he went to work for the 
Department of Veterans Affairs as a Police Officer, was promoted to 
Police Detective a year later, and to Criminal Investigator in 1993. 
While working on criminal cases at the West LA VA Medical Center, Long 
Beach VA Medical Center, and the Sepulveda VA Medical Center, he had a 
conviction rate of 90%. He retired from the VA Police Department in 
1995 after re-injuring his old wound while arresting three suspects who 
were attempting to sell drugs on the VA hospital grounds, and he has 
dedicated the past several years to veterans' causes. He is also a 
champion of the rights of workers, serving for several years as Union 
President/Business Agent of American Federation of Government Employees 
(AFGE), Local 1061, at all veterans' hospitals in Southern California. 
He won 90% of his labor grievances with management during his term and 
helped to bring the Union local out of trusteeship and return it to the 
members.
  Dennis has been a Life Member of the California Narcotic Officers 
Association and of AMVETS Post#2 in Culver City. He is a member of the 
VVA Chapter #53 in Redondo Beach, the American legion Post #46 in 
Culver City, the Marine Corps League of San Diego East County, the 
Hermosa Beach Veterans Memorial Commission, the AMVETS National 
Committee on Homeless Veterans, the Advisory Committee of the VA 
Greater Los Angeles Health Care System, and the Los Angeles County 
Veterans Advisory Committee. He has held elective office of the 
California Democratic Veterans Caucus.
  He serves on the Board of New Directions, a long-term program for 
homeless veterans with drug and alcohol addiction with a spectacular 
success rate of 85%. He helped New Directions raise $5 million to 
restore a 60,000 sq. foot, three story building with the assistance of 
Congresswoman Maxine Waters and Senator Dianne Feinstein, and helped to 
guide the donation of a new state of the art kitchen by AMVETS 
Department of California Service Foundation.
  Dennis is immediate Past State Commander of AMVETS, which has over 
10,000 members in California. During his term, more women, people of 
color and gays joined AMVETS than any period in history. He also served 
AMVETS as Post #2 Commander, District 2 Finance Officer, Southern Area 
Commander, California Department Commander, and Trustee of the AMVETS 
Department of California Service Foundation.
  Through his participation in these many organizations, his 
achievements for veterans are too numerous to mention. He helped to get 
Veterans' Memorials in Hermosa Beach and in Palm Springs, and wheel 
chair buses for the VA in West Los Angeles and for the State Veterans 
Home in Chula Vista. He has handed out over 4000 blankets to homeless 
veterans, he started a web site for California AMVETS, and helped in 
writing a Veteran Plank for the California Democratic Party Platform.
  The Maxine Waters Award for Courage, which Dennis is receiving, is 
named for Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Representative of California's 
35th Congressional District who has been invited to attend the award 
ceremony. Dennis made headlines when he gave a key to Congresswoman 
Waters so she could make an unannounced inspection of a VA hospital 
locked-down psychiatric ward. The Congresswoman found the conditions 
deplorable, and sweeping reform took place. Dennis has shown other 
courageous action by walking with Maxine Waters and the Rev. Jesse 
Jackson, with the news media, from his union headquarters to the 
Director's Office of the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center to hand 
over thousands of pages of documents to the Director showing the 
alleged misappropriation of funds and misuse of VA land at this Medical 
Center. He undertakes these courageous actions despite the fact that he 
has had severe heart problems.
  As a Member of the House of Representatives Veterans' Affairs 
Committee, I thank Dennis O'Dell for his dedication and for his 
achievements on behalf of our nation's veterans. I am pleased to 
recognize Dennis O'Dell for his service to veterans and to congratulate 
him as the recipient of the Maxine Waters Award for Courage.




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