[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 176 (Tuesday, December 9, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S16114-S16115]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



  (At the request of Mr. Daschle, the following statement was ordered 
to be printed in the Record.)

                TRIBUTE TO BG EDWARD M. HARRINGTON, USA

 Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, today I pay tribute to BG Edward 
M. Harrington, upon his retirement from the United States Army after 
more than three decades of distinguished service to our Nation.
  Ed Harrington's military career can truly be described as an American 
success story. A son of Massachusetts, he grew up in the coastal town 
of Marshfield, where his family's roots extend back three generations. 
After graduating from Marshfield High School, he attended Northeastern 
University in Boston, earning a degree in Business Administration. 
Before the ink was dry on his diploma, Ed received his draft notice and 
soon donned the battle dress of an infantryman. It wasn't long until 
his superior recognized his leadership potential, and he was selected 
for Officer Candidate School. This marked the beginning of what turned 
out to be an exemplary career as an officer who rose to the pinnacle of 
the complex world of acquisition management.
  As a lieutenant in the Quartermaster Corps, he received orders for 
Vietnam where he was assigned to the First Cavalry Division. After 
service in Vietnam, he returned stateside and assumed command of the 
259th Field Service Company at Fort Bragg. Then, with family in tow, he 
headed for Germany, serving in various Signal Command positions.
  After being promoted to captain, Ed returned to Massachusetts to 
become a professor of military science at Worcester Polytechnic 
Institute and Fitchburg State College.
  In the mid-1980s, Ed's expertise in defense acquisition management 
prompted his selection for the challenging position of production 
manager for the M1A1 Abrams Tank at the Tank-Automotive and Armaments 
Command in Warren, Michigan. There, he met the technical challenge of 
upgrading the tank's armor plating improving survivability and 
personnel protection. Years later, he would return to that organization 
as the Deputy for System Acquisition, a position in which he exercised 
milestone decision authority for more than 200 Army programs, including 
the

[[Page S16115]]

Paladin artillery system and the High Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled 
Vehicle, better known as the HUMVEE.
  Following high-level logistics assignments overseas and stateside, he 
assumed the first of three command assignments that would culminate in 
his selection for flag officer and his ascension to the top of the 
Defense Contract Management Agency.
  In the mid-1990s, as commander of the defense contract management 
office in Syracuse, he oversaw the performance of contracts associated 
with a number of large systems, including the Seawolf Submarine, the C-
17 aircraft, and the Javelin anti-tank missile system. A few years 
later, Ed returned to his home State, serving as the director of 
Defense Contract Management Command's eastern district headquartered in 
Boston. There, with a dispersed workforce of 6,000 and more than 20 
field offices, he and his staff managed nearly all the defense 
contracts performed in the eastern United States.
  Since assuming leadership of the Defense Contract Management Agency, 
DCMA, in February 2001, Brigadier General Harrington has refashioned 
and expanded DoD's acquisition-management mission, and in so doing, has 
affirmed DCMA's standing as one of DoD's premiere combat support 
agencies. Today, DCMA carries out its responsibilities around the globe 
at sites as diverse as a circuit board manufacturer in Silicon Valley 
to a combat theater in the Middle East.
  Ed Harrington's compassion and distinct style of leadership were 
dramatically brought to the fore following the tragic events of 
September 11, 2001, in which one of his DCMA colleagues, Herb Homer of 
Milford, MA, perished while on official travel aboard United Airlines 
Flight 175 that crashed into the south tower of the World Trade Center. 
With compassion and grace, Ed went above and beyond his duty to comfort 
and console the Homer family, and assist Herb's widow, Karen, in 
dealing with the administrative complexities following the death of her 
husband. Thanks to the efforts of Ed Harrington, the memory of Herb 
Homer and the recognition of his sacrifice will long endure as an 
inspiration to thousands throughout the DoD acquisition community.
  Whether he was on a muddy ridge as an infantryman, at the front of a 
college lecture hall, on a contractor's plant floor, or at the side of 
a grieving family, BG Edward M. Harrington served his country with 
valor, loyalty, and integrity. On the occasion of his retirement from 
the United States Army, I offer thanks and congratulations to one of 
New England's finest, and wish him and his wife, Jane, well in their 
future pursuits.

                          ____________________