[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 168 (Thursday, November 1, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2304]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        IN HONOR OF JERRY SMITH

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, November 1, 2007

  Mr. FARR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a great American, 
Monterey County Supervisor, Jerry Smith, on the occasion of his 
recognition as one of Monterey County's outstanding veterans of the 
year by the Monterey County Veterans Services Advisory Commission. I am 
honored to have this opportunity to recognize Supervisor Smith not only 
because of his long public service in the California Central Coast 
community that I represent, but also because I consider Jerry and Byrl, 
the love of his life and wife of forty years, as friends.
  Jerry Smith was born in 1945 and raised in Monterey County, 
California. He is the descendant of a pioneer family that arrived on 
the Monterey Peninsula in 1889. His great grandfather, William Niblett, 
first settled in Pacific Grove. The Niblett family lived there until 
1937 and later moved to what was then the unincorporated community of 
Seaside. In the 1950s, Jerry's family was active in the successful 
efforts to incorporate this area as the City of Seaside. My own 
family's connection to Jerry's family begins at that time through my 
father Fred Farr's Seaside based law practice and his own involvement 
in the Seaside incorporation efforts.
  After college, Jerry served a tour of duty in Vietnam with the Army's 
4th Infantry Division. Following his return to Seaside in 1968, Jerry 
worked in a variety of fields including hotel management, banking, and 
auto sales. That is where I first met him, when in 1978 he sold me a 
Volkswagen Rabbit. Later that year following a service visit, I pulled 
into traffic while leaving Jerry's Wester Volkswagen dealership and 
into the path of a fast moving cement truck. I have joked with Jerry 
over the years that had this accident actually been fatal, rather than 
simple near fatal, he would have been the last person on Earth that I 
had any contact with.
  In 1982, Jerry launched a public service career in law enforcement. 
He served over twenty years as a peace officer at the California State 
Correctional Training Facility in Soledad, where he rose to the 
position of Community Resources Manager. In 1998, Jerry won his first 
of three terms as Mayor of his home town. Under his leadership, the 
City of Seaside started its rebirth following the 1993 closure of the 
adjacent Fort Ord Army base. In 2004, Jerry became the first African 
American elected to the Monterey County Board of Supervisors to 
represent the Fourth District. In his capacity as County Supervisor, 
Jerry serves on numerous Committees and Boards, including the Monterey 
County Voting Rights Committee, the Fort Ord Reuse Authority, the 
Transportation Agency of Monterey County, the Natividad Medical Center 
Board of Trustees, and many others. In all of this work, Jerry has kept 
the interest of veterans at the forefront both in his official capacity 
and as an active member of American Legion Post 591 and the Veterans of 
Foreign Wars.
  Jerry has also been an active member of his community beyond his 
official duties as Mayor and Supervisor. He attends St. Francis Xavier 
Church and is a member of numerous charitable organizations throughout 
Monterey County, such as St. Francis Xavier Knights of Columbus, 
Monterey County NAACP, United Way, and the Monterey County Crime 
Prevention Association, to name a few.
  Madam Speaker, in addition to his record of public service in 
general, and for veterans in particular, Jerry is also a shining role 
model for comity and decorum in public discourse. He is unfailingly 
gracious. Even in heated disagreement, of which we have had our share 
over the years, Jerry is always at pains to treat the other 
participants in the discourse with dignity. I know that I speak for the 
whole House in offering Jerry and Byrl our congratulations and best 
wishes for the future.

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