[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 185 (Thursday, December 10, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2924]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      HONORING NORWICH UNIVERSITY AND ITS INAUGURAL DAY OF SERVICE

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                           HON. PETER WELCH-

                               of VERMONT

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 9, 2009

  Mr. WELCH. Madam Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge Norwich 
University and its inaugural Day of Service.
  Located in the foothills of the Green Mountains in Northfield, 
Vermont, Norwich University is the oldest private military college in 
the Nation. The university's founder, Captain Alden Partridge, believed 
in the importance of service and experiential learning. On November 7, 
2009, over 150 alumni, undergraduate and graduate students, staff, and 
friends of Norwich University exemplified these principles by joining 
together in the university's inaugural Day of Service. The date was 
chosen specifically to coincide with Veterans Day, with most of the 
volunteer opportunities focused on supporting our Nation's veterans and 
active duty military.
  Here in the DC area, dozens of alumni and friends volunteered at 
Walter Reed Army Medical Center's Fisher Houses, which are non-profit 
homes where family members of injured soldiers can stay while their 
soldier recuperates from injury. Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, Norwich 
alumni visited with veterans at the local Veterans' Community Living 
Center and sponsored an afternoon of pizza and bingo. Norwich community 
volunteers in Massachusetts, New York, and Florida collected hundreds 
of toys and books to be distributed through the Armed Forces Foundation 
and Operation Paperback. Elsewhere around the country volunteers 
assembled care packages that will be sent to Norwich University alumni 
currently serving in Iraq. In North Carolina, alumni rallied to support 
Wakefield High School's anti-drunk driving efforts, and in San Antonio 
over 20 alumni and friends spent the morning volunteering in the fruit 
and vegetable gardens of the San Antonio Food Bank. In my home State of 
Vermont, over 50 students and alumni helped with local river cleanup, 
volunteered at the Vermont Food Bank and Habitat for Humanity, and 
provided logistical support for the White River Junction Mobile Vet 
Center.
  At a time when so many of the men and women of our armed forces are 
serving around the globe, the Norwich Day of Service is a praiseworthy 
example of how those of us at home can volunteer our time to thank our 
servicemembers and veterans for their sacrifice.

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