[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 51 (Friday, March 23, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E620]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                186TH ANNIVERSARY OF GREEK INDEPENDENCE

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                         HON. ZACHARY T. SPACE

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 22, 2007

  Mr. SPACE. Madam Speaker, I rise today in acknowledgement of last 
week's consideration and passage of H. Res. 228, a bill recognizing the 
186th anniversary of the independence of Greece and celebrating Greek 
and American democracy.
  I am honored to have supported a bill whose significance is so 
extensive and which has such enormous personal meaning to me.
  My paternal grandfather emigrated from Greece in the early 20th 
century and earned his citizenship in his new country by fighting in 
World War I. My father, Socrates, continued the Space family's 
patriotic tradition by serving in the Marines during the Korean War. 
After the war, my father attended Ohio State's law school, thanks to 
the GI Bill.
  I am immensely proud of my Greek heritage, but I'm also proud of the 
Greek American community. In fact, I'm proud of the symbiotic 
relationship between my Greek heritage and the Greek-American legacy.
  The opportunities afforded to my father and my father's father in 
America were--in my opinion--a result of the democratic by-products of 
freedom and liberty that Americans enjoy, thanks to the Greeks.
  Early on, America's Founding Fathers looked to the ancient Greeks and 
their enlightened society for inspiration in forming a new government. 
In fact, American representative democracy, as we know it, is rooted in 
the philosophy and ethos of the Greeks.
  Today, as we celebrate the anniversary of this wonderful Nation's 
independence, it's important that we continue to recognize the 
significance of Greek contributions to the global society. As an 
American, and as a Greek, I very much support the sentiment of H. Res. 
228.

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