[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 99 (Friday, July 16, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1396]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  CONGRATULATIONS TO COLONEL ROBERT B. KEYSER, ON THE OCCASION OF HIS 
                               RETIREMENT

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JO BONNER

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, July 15, 2004

  Mr. BONNER. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride and pleasure that I 
rise to pay tribute to Colonel Robert B. Keyser on the occasion of his 
retirement as Commander and District Engineer of the Army Corps of 
Engineers in Mobile, Alabama.
  For the past three years, Colonel Keyser has served the Mobile 
District--comprised of an area ranging from Alabama, Mississippi, 
Florida, Tennessee, and Georgia to all of Central and South America--
with an incomparable level of leadership and professionalism.
  A native of Cornwall, New York, Colonel Keyser received his Bachelor 
of Science degree from the United States Military Academy at West 
Point, New York. He also received a Master's Degree in Engineering from 
the University of Florida and a Master's Degree in National Resource 
Strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces. Colonel 
Keyser is registered with the State of Alabama as a professional 
engineer and was inducted into Tau Beta Pi, the national engineering 
honor society.
  Following his commissioning as a second lieutenant in the United 
States Army in 1978, Colonel Keyser went on to graduate from the Air 
Command and Staff College, the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, 
and from Engineer Officer Basic and Advanced Courses. During his 
military career he served with the 588th Engineer Battalion at Fort 
Polk, Louisiana, the 2nd Engineer Battalion in Korea, the 94th Engineer 
Battalion in Germany and Southwest Asia, and the United States Army 
Total Personnel Command in Alexandria, Virginia. Prior to his 
assignment as Commander of the Mobile Engineer District, he served as 
Commander of the Corps of Engineers Philadelphia District.
  Colonel Keyser has consistently drawn the recognition and praise of 
his colleagues and superior officers, and his outstanding performance 
as a member of the Army has resulted in his being awarded the Legion of 
Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal with five oak leaf clusters, the 
Army Commendation Medal, and the Army Achievement Medal.
  From his first day as Commander of the Mobile District, Colonel 
Keyser has taken a strong interest in the concerns of the many 
thousands of men and women living in areas under his jurisdiction. Time 
and again, he has risen above the challenges presented to his office, 
whether they are as routine as a permit application for the 
construction of a seawall to something as difficult as the numerous 
natural disasters which have hit the Mobile District in recent years. 
He has instilled a tremendous work ethic in his subordinates and has 
gone out of his way to foster a strong working relationship with 
agencies and officials at local, state, and federal levels.
  Along with his tremendous involvement in the activities and mission 
of the Mobile Engineer District of the Army Corps of Engineers, Colonel 
Keyser is also actively involved in his community. A resident of 
Fairhope, Alabama, he has played a lead role in the development and 
growth of a community youth soccer league, in which his children 
participate and he serves as a team coach.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me today in recognizing 
Colonel Robert B. Keyser for his tremendous contributions to the 
citizens of the First Congressional District of Alabama, the Mobile 
Engineer District, and the entire Army Corps of Engineers. The 
experience and enthusiasm he has brought to his job and the 
professionalism he has displayed throughout his career are unquestioned 
and unparalleled.
  He has indeed been a genuine asset both to his office and to the 
United States military, and I am proud and honored to call him my 
friend. I wish him and his family--his wife, Cathy, his sons, Daniel, 
Brian, and Michael, and his daughter, Amy--much happiness and success 
as they enter this new phase of their lives.

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