[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 83 (Thursday, June 4, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1324]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING JOHN BRENNEMAN

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ADAM H. PUTNAM

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 4, 2009

  Mr. PUTNAM. Madam Speaker, today I rise to recognize John Brenneman, 
an outstanding naturalist and public servant from the 12th 
Congressional District of Florida. John has worked tirelessly for the 
Florida Cooperative Extension Service and Imperial Polk County for 30 
years. His devotion to improving local water quality and educating 
lakefront homeowners is evident through his continuing commitment to 
serve the public with excellence and integrity.
  John's academic achievements have shaped his career in water 
management. He earned both his B.S. in Agriculture and his Masters of 
Agricultural Management and Resource Development from the University of 
Florida. He is also a certified instructor for the Florida Master 
Naturalist Program Wetland, Coastal and Upland Modules. With this 
certification, he actively assists rural pond owners in becoming good 
stewards of their water property. He has taught them how to manage 
surface waters and fisheries to enhance the aesthetics of their pond, 
while maintaining sound water quality.
  John has an obvious passion for educating the public and is 
responsible for developing a program to educate lakefront residents 
entitled, ``Living at the Lake.'' This primer has been used extensively 
for Florida's lakefront homeowners and by others interested in central 
Florida's lake resources. John also coordinates the Polk County 
Extension Water School. This program is designed to provide local 
officials with valuable information to prepare them for addressing 
important water issues and policies.
  John has also molded young minds and shaped lives through his work as 
a 4-H Agent. For many years, John chaperoned trips to 4-H Congress and 
4-H Camps where he taught courses, led fishing expeditions and 
counseled young people on character and values. His own example is what 
provides the best lesson for a life of service, love, and faith. I say 
this as one who benefited from his mentoring.
  John's experience and influence reaches beyond Polk County lines. For 
ten years, John worked to educate businesses and residents through the 
natural resource education program as a multi-county agent. 
Additionally, John has worked with volunteers associated with the 
University of Florida's LAKEWATCH program which was designed to monitor 
water quality in local lakes. As a result of John's efforts, data was 
collected from local lakes on a monthly basis and entered into an 
extensive database used for profiling the local waterscape.
  John and his wife, Terri, have been married for almost 36 years. They 
have one daughter, Emily, and three sons Jacob, Adam, and Joseph. When 
not tending to his work or bragging about his grandkids, John is a 
Sunday school teacher and Deacon at the First Baptist Church at the 
Mall.

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