[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 195 (Wednesday, December 19, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2622-E2623]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING MAYOR FRED TURNAGE

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. G.K. BUTTERFIELD

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 19, 2007

  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Madam Speaker, for the past 34 years, Rocky Mount, 
North Carolina has known only one mayor--Fred Turnage. During his 
tenure, he showed time and time again that he was one of our State's 
finest and most effective leaders.
  Part of what makes him such a great leader is that he truly 
understands how to be a public servant. Mayor Turnage wanted to improve 
the quality of life of every single person living in Rocky Mount; he 
always had big plans for improving the city for the people; and, he 
always worked as hard as he could to achieve his goals.
  Mayor Turnage successfully navigated the city through its darkest 
time in the aftermath of Hurricane Floyd in 1999. The storm dumped 20 
inches of rain on a region already saturated by two previous storms. 
Floyd engulfed neighborhoods, communities and entire towns with 
floodwaters and killed 16 people in the Twin Counties.
  Almost a tenth of the city was flooded; 1,000 structures were 
destroyed with damage estimated at $400 million; and, hundreds of 
residents were evacuated from their homes.
  During those dark days, Mayor Turnage provided the strong leadership 
needed to give people a sense of comfort and the belief that the 
community could rebuild and be stronger than it was even before the 
storm.
  Under his leadership, Rocky Mount successfully moved forward with a 
plan to rebuild, expand and strengthen the city beyond what it had been 
prior to the storm. Grants, private funds and city budget commitments 
paid for the new Imperial Centre, Rocky Mount Sports Complex, YMCA, 
Braswell Memorial Library, several parks and the train station.
  During his three decades at the helm of the city, Mayor Turnage 
helped to successfully navigate the community as it moved from a 
tobacco and textile city to one that relies on diverse factories, small 
businesses and tourism.
  Mayor Turnage has presided over more than 700 City Council meetings 
and he's missed just six in his 34-year tenure. Two of those absences 
occurred because he was out of town on city business.

[[Page E2623]]

  He grew up in Rocky Mount, graduated from what was then Rocky Mount 
Senior High in 1954 and moved on to Wake Forest University. He 
graduated from law school in 1961 and returned to Rocky Mount to work 
as an attorney. He then worked as assistant clerk of court for about 18 
months before he opened his own law firm. In those days there were no 
district attorneys, so he ran successfully for prosecuting attorney for 
Nash County.
  In 1971, he was elected to the City Council. At age 37, two years 
later, he was elected Rocky Mount's youngest mayor.
  In December, Mayor Turnage turned over the gavel and the city had its 
first new mayor in 34 years. Mayor Turnage, and his wife, Norma, have 
been strong and steady leaders for their community, and they have 
succeeded in making their community a better place for everyone there.
  Please join me in recognizing the great accomplishments of Rocky 
Mount's mayor, Fred Turnage.

                          ____________________