[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 68 (Friday, May 26, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E983-E984]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     HONORING CAPTAIN CURTIS A. SPRINGER, UNITED STATES COAST GUARD

                                 ______
                                 

                     HON. C.A. DUTCH RUPPERSBERGER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 25, 2006

  Mr. RUPPERSBERGER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Captain Curtis 
A. Springer, Commander of Coast Guard Sector Baltimore, Maryland, since 
June 2003. As Commander, Captain Springer has worn many important hats. 
He is Captain of the Port for the Port of Baltimore, Officer in Charge 
of Marine Inspection, Federal On-Scene Coordinator, Search and Rescue 
Mission Coordinator, and Federal Maritime Security Coordinator for all 
Coast Guard operational missions performed in the Upper Chesapeake Bay 
and Washington, DC.
  Despite this overwhelming portfolio of responsibilities, Captain 
Springer has served the citizens of Maryland and this Nation quietly, 
honorably, and exceptionally. Embodying all that the United States 
Coast Guard is, Captain Springer has accepted his many roles and worked 
with his team regardless of the resources provided. This is a man who 
has earned respect the old fashioned way, through hard work and a sense 
of duty.
  Captain Springer and I have been through much together: from dealing 
with the impact of the storm surge to Hurricane Isabel, to the water 
taxi disaster in Baltimore's Inner Harbor to homeland security issues 
facing the Port of Baltimore. Through it all, Captain Springer has 
always ensured that the task at hand be completed at highest of 
standards.
  Captain Springer is a unique leader with an innate sense of what 
needs to be done. As Captain of the Port, he is required to keep 
trouble away from our waterways before it arrives. It is critical to 
balance the economic realities of commerce and the impact on the 
private sector with the safety of the port. He has kept these often 
competing interests in delicate balance. Beyond his military and 
maritime duties, Captain Springer understands Baltimore is a working 
port. His wise decisions have positively affected the State of Maryland 
and the people who do business at the port.
  Captain Springer received his commission from Officer Candidate 
School in 1982 after graduating from Methodist College in Fayetteville, 
North Carolina, where in 1980 he received a bachelors of arts degree in 
education. He received a master of public administration from Michigan 
State University and a master of business administration from the Sloan 
School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
  Throughout his Coast Guard career, Captain Springer's assignments 
have included staff officer at Reserve Training Programs Division Coast 
Guard Headquarters, Washington, DC; Deck Watch Officer and Operations 
Officer aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Mallow in Honolulu, HI; 
Operations Officer aboard the Coast

[[Page E984]]

Guard Cutter Citrus in Coos Bay, OR; Chief of the Maritime Law 
Enforcement School at the Coast Guard's Training Center in Petaluma, 
CA; Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Anacapa in Petersburg, 
Alaska; Program Reviewer in the Programs Division of the Office of the 
Chief of Staff, Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington, DC; Commander of 
Coast Guard Group Ohio Valley in Louisville, Kentucky; and Executive 
Assistant to the Atlantic Area Commander in Portsmouth, VA. His most 
recent assignment was as Deputy Chief, Office of Programs and Chief, 
Programs Review Division in the Office of the Chief of Staff at Coast 
Guard Headquarters.
  Captain Springer's military decorations include three Coast Guard 
Meritorious Service Medals, two Coast Guard Commendation Medals, two 
Coast Guard Achievement Medals, and a Commandant's Letter of 
Commendation.
  Beyond it all, I have always been struck by Captain Springer's down-
to-earth ``just the facts'' approach. He is simply a good guy who wants 
to get it right; and I, for one, am grateful for that.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that you join with me in thanking Captain Curtis 
A. Springer for all he has accomplished in Sector Baltimore, and to 
wish him the best of luck in his next assignment.

                          ____________________