[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 36 (Tuesday, March 4, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E290]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E290]]
                          HONORING WIL COOKSEY

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. RON LEWIS

                              of kentucky

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 4, 2008

  Mr. LEWIS of KENTUCKY. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Wil 
Cooksey for his service to the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Mr. Cooksey, a 
resident of Bowling Green, Kentucky, recently retired as plant manager 
of the General Motors Bowling Green Assembly Plant.
  Mr. Cooksey served as plant manager at the ``Home of the Corvette'' 
since 1993. The Bowling Green facility employs approximately 1,000 
total employees and assembles 35,000 Chevrolet Corvettes and 4,000 
Cadillac XLRs per year. Under Mr. Cooksey's leadership the Corvette 
team has earned more than 70 automotive industry awards since 1997 
including Motor Trend Car of the Year, JD Power Silver Plant Award, JD 
Power APEAL Award, and Car and Driver Top 10.
  Mr. Cooksey has been a successful advocate for building diversity at 
the Bowling Green facility, recruiting qualified minority students from 
schools not used in the past. Mr. Cooksey has also been active on the 
Executive Advisory Board of Advancing Minorities' Interest in 
Engineering and 100 Black Men of America Inc. For his hard work, Mr. 
Cooksey was recently awarded the Civil Rights Humanitarian Award by the 
State Street Baptist Church.
  Mr. Cooksey is also an active member of the Greenview Hospital board 
of directors, the boards of the National Corvette Museum, Tennessee 
State University, Western Kentucky University's College of Education 
and Behavioral Science, and the Drug Abuse Resistance Education 
Advisory Council.
  It is my privilege to honor Wil Cooksey today, before the entire 
United States House of Representatives, for his service to the Bowling 
Green community. I wish Wil, and his wife Elizabeth, a happy and 
healthy retirement.

                          ____________________