[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 9 (Thursday, February 7, 2002)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E116]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E116]]


                       TRIBUTE TO PHIL ROSENSTEIN

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. SOLOMON P. ORTIZ

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, February 7, 2002

  Mr. ORTIZ. Mr. Speaker, Quite often, the familiar faces we see and 
depend upon have entire stories behind them that we don't know. Phil 
Rosenstein of Corpus Christi has a familiar face, one that is always 
reliably around when there is a civic event, or if there is a cause to 
be advocated.
  I have been friends with Phil for several decades and he has a 
beautiful heart and a way of finding out what people need and how to 
get it to them. Everyone should know what a great man Phil is, what a 
great American he is, what a unique, charitable human being, what an 
everyday hero he is.
  An orphan raised in New York City, Phil came to Corpus Christi and 
joined the Merchant Marine and proceeded to see the world and his place 
in it. He visited orphanages all over the Far East, taking candy and 
clothing, offering financial assistance to them and, most importantly, 
drawing attention to their plight in the United States, connecting many 
Asian orphans with American families.
  As a Merchant marine for 40 years Phil never forgot his adopted 
hometown of Corpus Christi, and he combined that devotion with his love 
of the arts. As a Merchant Marine traveling to a host of foreign lands, 
Phil always set forth to find fine art and antiques that he purchased 
and donated to museums in the Coastal Bend. He was appointed field 
representative of the Corpus Christi Museum.
  He was also the Mayor Luther Jones' goodwill ambassador, representing 
Corpus Christi well and arranging for exchanges between Yokosuka, Japan 
and South Texas (Yokosuka was then the sister city to Corpus Christi).
  Phil helps those who need help, particularly seniors and children. 
Visiting local nursing homes led him to become the Mayor's volunteer 
liaison to senior citizens and senior care centers. He got them cable 
and purchased television sets for seniors. The Senior Community Service 
Awards confers an annual award to companies and agencies that have done 
the most for the senior community. In 1990, Phil won the award as a 
citizen, not a business nor a service agency.
  For his service in the Merchant Marine in World War II, Phil won 
service medals for campaigns in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean war 
zones, but those who depend upon HAM radios for contact with the world 
most value his service to them. At his own expense, while he was a 
Merchant Marine, he bought, set up, replaced or repaired any number of 
HAM radios for people living across the South and Midwest. He knew the 
world was too far away for those who were paralyzed or stricken with 
some manner of disability that kept them in the home, so he helped them 
with their HAM radios if they asked.
  He started the school supply program for needy children in Corpus 
Christi and was noted for his assistance to the Head Start program in 
Corpus Christi. He donated shoes to needy kids in Corpus Christi, even 
getting the crew of a ship on which he served to donate money for 
children's shoes in his hometown.
  Once, Phil noted that crosswalks at a school needed repainting. When 
the city didn't get to it, he bought the paint and painted it himself--
this is a metaphor for his whole life. When he saw a need, he went to 
fill it. (Even if it made the city unhappy.)
  I ask my colleagues to join me today in paying tribute to Phil 
Rosenstein, a unique American, a good Samaritan, and an extraordinary 
patriot.

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