[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 23 (Tuesday, February 12, 2008)]
[House]
[Pages H841-H842]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               JAMAL RASHARD ADDISON POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass 
the bill (H.R. 4203) to designate the facility of the United States 
Postal Service located at 3035 Stone Mountain Street in Lithonia, 
Georgia, as the ``Jamaal RaShard Addison Post Office Building,'' as 
amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 4203

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SPECIALIST JAMAAL RASHARD ADDISON POST OFFICE 
                   BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 3035 Stone Mountain Street in Lithonia, 
     Georgia, shall be known and designated as the ``Specialist 
     Jamaal RaShard Addison Post Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Specialist Jamaal RaShard Addison Post 
     Office Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Butterfield) and the gentleman from Connecticut 
(Mr. Shays) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from North Carolina.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from North Carolina?

[[Page H842]]

  There was no objection.
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues in 
the consideration of H.R. 4203, as amended, which names a postal 
facility in Lithonia, Georgia, after Army Specialist Jamaal Addison, 
the first soldier from Georgia to lose his life while serving in Iraq.
  H.R. 4203, which has the support of the entire congressional 
delegation from the State of Georgia, was introduced by my friend, 
Representative Henry ``Hank'' Johnson, Jr., of the State of Georgia on 
November 15, 2007, and was considered by and reported from the 
Oversight Committee by voice vote on January 29, 2008.
  Mr. Speaker, the measure before us pays tribute to the life and 
service of Army Specialist Jamaal RaShard Addison by renaming the post 
office in his hometown of Lithonia, Georgia, after him.
  A brave member of the 507th Ordnance Maintenance Company in Fort 
Bliss, Texas, Army Specialist Jamaal Addison died, unfortunately, on 
March 23, 2003, as a result of an enemy ambush near Nasiriyah, Iraq. 
Army Specialist Jamaal Addison was born on October 7, 1980, in the very 
town of Lithonia and spent his entire childhood there until enlisting 
in the United States Army in March of 2000.
  As we pay tribute to this heroic American citizen, let's also take a 
moment and recollect on the thousands of men and women in uniform 
currently serving abroad in order to protect us here at home.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that we all proudly commemorate both the life and 
unfortunate death of Army Specialist Jamaal Addison by passing H.R. 
4203. I want to commend the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson) for 
bringing forth this legislation and getting the entire delegation to 
support it.
  At this time, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this bill 
designating the United States postal facility located at 3035 Stone 
Mountain Street in Lithonia, Georgia as the ``Jamaal RaShard Addison 
Post Office Building.'' A native of Georgia, Army Specialist Jamaal 
Addison was a ``quiet, yet driven young man with a very gentle 
spirit.'' An honor roll student and member of the Junior ROTC, Jamaal 
graduated from Lakeside High School in Tucker, Georgia, in 1998.
  His love of video games fostered a passion for computers. Driven by 
his desire to start his own computer business, Jamaal saw the military 
as an opportunity to develop his expertise as a computer technician. 
Enrolling in the Army in 2000, Specialist Addison spent a year in Korea 
before he was sent to the Middle East as part of the 507th Maintenance 
Company in the first days of the Iraqi War.
  On March 23, 2003, the 507th convoy was ambushed and, tragically, 
Jamaal Addison lost his life. A dedicated husband, father, brother, and 
son, Specialist Addison was the first Georgian to pay the ultimate 
sacrifice in Iraq. His determination and caring spirit lives on through 
the Jamaal Addison Motivational Foundation, an organization founded by 
his mother, Patricia Roberts, to provide young members of the community 
with the opportunity to experience ``wide options available to them to 
lead successful lives'' and to ``strive to achieve his or her highest 
potential.''
  I urge the passage of this bill in honor of an ambitious, caring, and 
dedicated American who sacrificed his life while serving his country, a 
true American patriot.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he 
may consume to the gentleman from the Fourth Congressional District of 
Georgia (Mr. Johnson), the author and sponsor of this legislation, a 
friend who serves on the Armed Services Committee and the Judiciary 
Committee.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 
4203, my bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 3035 Stone Mountain Street in Lithonia, Georgia, as 
the ``Specialist Jamaal RaShard Addison Post Office Building.''
  The war in Iraq continues, and no matter what our differing opinions 
are on it, it is imperative that we honor those who have fallen serving 
our country. Specialist Jamaal RaShard Addison was one of the first to 
meet an untimely end, and it is my privilege to stand here today to 
honor him.
  Jamaal was born on October 7, 1980, to Patricia M. Roberts and Kevin 
B. Addison. He was the first Georgia soldier to lose his life in the 
Iraq war. He is survived by his parents and his 6-year-old son, Jamaal 
RaShard Addison, the 2nd. Jamaal was a lifelong resident of the Fourth 
District of Georgia, which is where I represent, and he was raised in 
the City of Lithonia for most of his life from 1981 to 1998.
  He attended Henderson Mill Elementary School, Henderson Middle 
School, and Lakeside High School. Motivated by the opportunity to train 
as a computer technician and to help provide for his family, Jamaal 
joined the ROTC at Lakeside High School in Decatur, Georgia, in 2000.
  After enlisting in the United States Army, Jamaal completed his basic 
training at Fort Benning and also at Fort Gordon in Georgia before 
serving a year in Korea. As a member of the 507th Maintenance Company, 
Jamaal was part of the initial invasion of Iraq. He was killed just 
days after he arrived there on March 23, 2003, when his convoy took a 
wrong turn and was ambushed near Nasiriyah. He was just 23 years old.

                              {time}  1630

  Specialist Jamaal RaShard Addison was the first Georgia soldier to 
pay the ultimate price in the Iraq war. Out of this tragedy, however, 
has come some good in the form of the Jamaal Addison Motivational 
Foundation, Inc., founded by Jamaal's mother, Patricia Roberts.
  The foundation works with young people to offer opportunities for 
positive growth and to expose youth to the wide options available to 
them to lead successful lives. It offers youth an 8-week program 
designed to motivate, teach, and inspire them to develop into citizens 
of stature to give back to the community.
  I've had the pleasure of working with Mrs. Roberts and have seen 
firsthand the tremendous impact that this foundation has had upon our 
community. Jamaal's father, Kevin Addison, is a career postal worker; 
and so renaming this post office is a particularly fitting tribute to a 
fine young man who was an excellent father as well.
  Specialist Jamaal RaShard Addison paid the ultimate price by giving 
his life in service to his country. He was the first of too many 
Georgians to perish in Iraq. This year marks the fifth anniversary of 
his untimely passing, and I am very pleased to be able to offer this 
bill in his memory.
  America's fallen soldiers are heroes who deserve our enduring 
support. I ask my colleagues and all Americans to recognize those who 
have fallen and those who are currently serving by supporting this 
legislation.
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Butterfield) that the House suspend 
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4203, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  The title was amended so as to read: ``A bill to designate the 
facility of the United States Postal Service located at 3035 Stone 
Mountain Street in Lithonia, Georgia, as the `Specialist Jamaal RaShard 
Addison Post Office Building'.''
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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