[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 43 (Tuesday, March 18, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E498-E499]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    TRIBUTE TO SOUTHERN OREGON RADIO PERSONALITY DICK BAILEY ON HIS 
                      RETIREMENT FROM THE AIRWAVES

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. GREG WALDEN

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 18, 2003

  Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to my 
good friend Dick Bailey and congratulate him on his retirement from the 
airwaves of southern Oregon. Dick's commanding, gravelly voice has been 
a fixture of KCMX radio in Medford for five years and he will surely be 
difficult to replace.
  Dick Bailey was born on February 4th, 1941, in Winchester, 
Massachusetts, a sin for which the people of Oregon long ago forgave 
him when they welcomed him into their warm Western embrace. Dick 
graduated from Gorham High School in Gorham, Maine, and afterward 
enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, where he served from 1958 
to 1962. He went on to receive a degree from the College of the 
Sequoias in Visalia, California and also attended the College of the 
Desert in Palm Desert, California, where he edited the college's first 
newspaper.
  Dick's professional career has been a long and varied one that has 
taken him to radio and television stations in California, Washington, 
Alaska, Vermont and of course Oregon

[[Page E499]]

over the past 41 years. While in Alaska, he taught broadcasting classes 
at the University of Alaska. Dick spent several years announcing at the 
Redwood Acres Speedway and Eureka Speedway in California, as well as 
the Southern Oregon Speedway. He also announced the Hanford 150 in 
Hanford, California, and a Canadian-American Race in Vermont. Dick's 
wandering came to an end when he settled in Shady Cove in Oregon's 
Jackson Valley, and it is there that he will retire.
  During his career, Dick has covered Presidents Ronald Reagan, George 
Bush the Elder, Bill Clinton and our current President Bush. During 
President Bush's trip to southern Oregon last year, he provided steady 
and reliable coverage of the President's visit, which his listeners 
have come to expect from Dick. For years he has communicated the latest 
news and happenings around the greater Medford area with clarity and 
precision. Dick has both a voice made for radio, and no one who has 
heard him on the airwaves doubts that he found his true calling. 
Fortunately, he also has a tremendous sense of humor.
  Mr. Speaker, Dick Bailey's service to his community did not just come 
in the form of his news broadcasts. He has also lent his voice to the 
Jacksonville Christmas Parade and other local activities. Anyone who 
knows Dick knows of his love of the outdoors, and his service as a 
member of the Jackson County Parks Commission reflects his desire to 
preserve the natural beauty of his adopted home. He is an active 
outdoorsman and has made clear how much he looks forward to the extra 
time he will have for fishing following his retirement. In the years 
ahead, the local fish population will have much to fear from Dick as he 
spends his days casting his line and enjoying the beauty of southern 
Oregon's waterways.
  Mr. Speaker, Dick Bailey will be fondly remembered by his listeners 
in southern Oregon, just as he'll be missed by his colleagues. Like 
everyone who has dealt with Dick in a professional capacity, I'm sorry 
to see him retire, but happy to see him begin the relaxing years of his 
retirement. Thank you for everything you've given to us, Dick, and best 
wishes in the years ahead.

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