[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 104 (Wednesday, July 14, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H5558-H5560]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                DAVID JOHN DONAFEE POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 5390) to designate the facility of the United 
States Postal Service located at 13301 Smith Road in Cleveland, Ohio, 
as the ``David John Donafee Post Office Building''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 5390

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

     SECTION 1. DAVID JOHN DONAFEE POST OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 13301 Smith Road in Cleveland, Ohio, shall 
     be known and designated as the ``David John Donafee 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 ``David John Donafee Post Office 
     Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Davis) and the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Chaffetz) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Illinois.


                             General Leave

  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may 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 Illinois?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to

[[Page H5559]]

the author of this legislation, the gentleman from Cleveland, Ohio, 
Representative Kucinich.
  Mr. KUCINICH. I thank my colleague and all Members for their support 
of this bill: Mr. Davis, Mr. Chaffetz, and my colleague Ms. Sutton.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to offer today H.R. 5390, which renames the 
post office located at 13301 Smith Road in Cleveland, Ohio, as the 
``David John Donafee Post Office Building.'' I would like to thank 
Chairman Lynch for his efforts to bring H.R. 5390 to the floor of the 
House.
  David John Donafee was a lifelong northeast Ohioan who committed his 
life to family and community. He was born and raised in Brook Park, 
Ohio, and graduated from Polaris High School in Berea.
  He served northeast Ohio as a postal carrier for 14 years. His 
coworkers knew David for his geniality and positive spirit, his sense 
of humor and willingness to go out of his way for anyone. One coworker 
remarked, ``He was the guy that made the place a little better.''
  David was well known in the local hockey community for his support of 
and involvement in his son's youth hockey league. He announced and 
scored the games. He was the ``heart of all of the teams,'' according 
to his wife, Sandi.
  Mr. Speaker, on February 14, 2008, Valentine's Day, David Donafee was 
walking his mail route in Parma Heights, Ohio. He was delivering the 
mail to people on his route just like he did every other day, but this 
day was different. He was struck by a car while in the line of his 
duties as a postal worker, as a mail carrier, and he was killed. His 
tragic death resounded in the community and resounded with his 
coworkers.
  He left behind his wife, Sandi, and their two sons, Derek and Liam. 
And my thoughts and the thoughts of the people in the community 
continue to be with the Donafee family as they adjust to life without 
their beloved David.
  In honoring David John Donafee by naming a post office building after 
him, we actually honor all of those who deliver the mail, showing that 
when something like an unexpected tragedy happens, that this Congress 
does appreciate the work of those who make it possible for the commerce 
of the country to move by virtue of the mail.

                              {time}  1100

  So I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating the life of David 
John Donafee and honoring his legacy. I urge passage of H.R. 5390.

                  [From cleveland.com, Sept. 4, 2008]

 Southwest Brewfest To Benefit Family of Deceased Letter Carrier David 
                                Donafee

                            (By Damon Sims)

       Neither snow nor rain nor gloom of night kept David Donafee 
     from his appointed rounds.
       Nor could a little foul weather keep the 42-year-old letter 
     carrier from scoring his son's Padua High School hockey 
     games, or from the Friday night beer-and-bull session with 
     his buddies at the Brew Kettle Taproom & Smokehouse in 
     Strongsville.
       ``It was like `Cheers,' '' said Donafee's wife, Sandi. ``My 
     husband was kind of the life of the party, but in a quiet, 
     gentle way.''
       That all changed on a gloomy Valentine's Day this year. 
     Donafee, a postman for 14 years, was making his rounds about 
     noon when he was struck by a car and killed while crossing 
     York Road near Valley Forge High School in Parma Heights. The 
     driver, a 19-year-old Cleveland man, was questioned. No 
     charges have been filed, and the accident remains under 
     investigation.
       Donafee, of Brunswick, is survived by his wife, Sandi, and 
     sons, Derek, 15, and Liam, 11. His death also left a void in 
     the youth-hockey community, with his postal-worker colleagues 
     and with his friends at the Brew Kettle, who remember him as 
     a fun and convivial companion.
       ``He was one of the happiest, most positive people I've 
     ever met,'' said the Brew Kettle's owner, Chris McKim. ``When 
     the world loses a grouch, it's sad. When it loses a guy like 
     Dave, a guy who was always upbeat and always on his A-game, 
     it's a tragedy.''
       The different forces that helped define Donafee's life--
     good friends, good music, good beer--are coming together 
     Saturday for an event designed to honor his memory and help 
     his family. McKim has organized the first Southwest Brewfest, 
     a charity craft-beer festival at the Chalet near the 
     Cleveland Metroparks' toboggan chutes in the Mill Stream Run 
     Reservation in Strongsville.
       The festival will feature beer from brewers in Cleveland's 
     southern and western suburbs: Brew Kettle, Rocky River 
     Brewing Co., Cornerstone Brewing Co. and Buckeye Brewing.
       Musicians David Fayne, Woody Leffel and the Armstrong 
     Bearcat Band will provide the soundtrack to the event, which 
     takes place from 1 to 7 p.m. The $30 ticket will include a 
     commemorative glass along with 10 four-ounce beer samples.
       Proceeds will help the Donafee family with Derek's $8,300 
     annual tuition at Padua, a Catholic preparatory school in 
     Parma Heights.
       The annual event will also help send Liam, now a sixth-
     grader, to Padua. Leftover money will go directly to Padua to 
     benefit other students.
       That would have meant a lot to Donafee, who said Derek's 
     experience at Padua turned around his son's academic career, 
     according to McKim, himself a Padua graduate.
       Donafee's death didn't escape the notice of the powers-
     that-be. Earlier this year, U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich paid 
     tribute to the mail carrier on the floor of the House. Sandi 
     Donafee has the congressman's words inscribed on a plaque in 
     her living room.
       ``May his life be an example of how we should lead our 
     own,'' Kucinich told colleagues.
       And what would the genial mailman have thought of all the 
     attention?
       ``It would have made Dave smile,'' McKim said with a 
     chuckle.
                                  ____


                  [From cleveland.com, Feb. 14, 2009]

Widow Sandi Donafee of Brunswick Mourns Husband, David, Who Was Killed 
                           on Valentine's Day

               (By Stan Donaldson, Plain Dealer Reporter)

       Parma Heights.--Sandi Donafee left a handmade valentine 
     Tuesday on York Road for her husband--a cracked heart.
       As cars drove by the poster-size card, a tear rolled down 
     the cheek of the 43-year-old Brunswick woman's face.
       This is where her husband, David, a U.S. postal worker, was 
     killed last Valentine's Day after he was hit by a car as he 
     crossed the street while delivering mail.
       Since the accident, Donafee, a hairstylist, has had to 
     raise her two teenage sons without their dad. His postal 
     brethren, family and friends have worked to help them through 
     the grieving process.
       ``I feel like this has been one big nightmare that I 
     haven't been able to wake up from,'' said Donafee, as she 
     looked at a two-sided valentine she placed on a telephone 
     pole. It reads ``Recklessness took my love.''
       The valentine includes a photo of the couple smiling.
       Police said David Donafee, a 42-year-old father of two, was 
     hit by Jeff Kluter, 19, as he crossed York near Independence 
     Street. Donafee was not in a crosswalk.
       Kluter was arraigned on misdemeanor aggravated vehicular 
     homicide charges in November. Kluter has a pretrial hearing 
     scheduled for Monday.
       If convicted, he faces up to six months in jail and a fine 
     of up to $1,000.
       Messages left for Kluter were not returned this week. 
     Donafee's family and friends are upset because they feel the 
     Cleveland man should face more time in jail. Sandi Donafee 
     also wants Parma Heights City Council to reduce the 35 mph 
     speed limit to 25 mph because it's near Valley Forge High 
     School and Cuyahoga Community College.
       Eric Donafee, 51, said the family will forever be 
     heartbroken.
       He said his kid brother left the steel industry in his mid-
     20s to become a postal worker because he thought of it as a 
     safer career.
                                  ____


                  [From cleveland.com, Feb. 15, 2009]

         A Cracked Heart Marks Brunswick Woman's Valentine Pain

                   (By John Kroll, The Plain Dealer)

       Parma Heights.--Sandi Donafee left a hand-made Valentine 
     Tuesday on York Road for her husband--a cracked heart.
       As cars drove by the poster-size card, a tear rolled down 
     the cheek of the 43-year-old Brunswick woman's face.
       This is where her husband David Donafee, a U.S. postal 
     worker, was killed last Valentine's Day after he was hit by a 
     car as he crossed the street while delivering mail.
       Since the accident, Donafee, a hair stylist, has had to 
     raise her two teen-age sons without their dad. His postal 
     brethren, family and friends have worked to help them through 
     the grieving process.
       ``I feel like this has been one big nightmare that I 
     haven't been able to wake up from,'' said Donafee, as she 
     looked at a two-sided Valentine she placed on a telephone 
     pole that says ``Recklessness took my love.''
       The Valentine includes a photo of the couple smiling.
       Police said that Donafee, a 42-year-old father of two, was 
     hit by Jeff Kluter, 19, as he crossed York near Independence 
     Street. Donafee was not in a crosswalk.
       Kluter was arraigned on misdemeanor aggravated vehicular 
     homicide charges in November. Kluter has a pre-trial hearing 
     scheduled for Monday.
       If convicted, he faces up to six months in jail and fine of 
     up to $1,000.
       Messages left for Kluter were not returned this week. 
     Donafee's family and friends are upset because they feel the 
     Cleveland man should face more time in jail. Sandi Donafee 
     also wants Parma Heights City Council to reduce the 35 mph 
     speed limit to 25 mph because it's near Valley Forge and 
     Cuyahoga Community College.
       Eric Donafee, 51, said the family will forever be 
     heartbroken. He said his kid brother left the steel industry 
     in his mid 20s to become a postal worker because he thought 
     of it as a safer career.

[[Page H5560]]

       ``It happened because [the driver] was negligent,'' his 
     brother said. ``He broke a lot of hearts and it isn't 
     right.''
       His sister-in-law also wants justice.
       ``I have tried in my heart to forgive him but I am not 
     there yet,'' Donafee said. ``I look at what my boys and I 
     lost . . . it is too hard.''
       At the accident site, Donafee was surrounded by some of her 
     husband's former co-workers from the Middleburg Heights post 
     office branch where he had worked for 14 years. They stood at 
     the makeshift memorial and shared stories.
       In September, friends held a benefit in Strongsville that 
     raised money for his sons--ages 16 and 11--to attend Padua, a 
     Catholic prep school in Parma. Members from the post office 
     will lay a wreath at his grave today--the family isn't 
     emotionally ready to go back just yet.
       ``This shouldn't be a part of the job,'' said Paul Hunt, 
     who worked with Donafee for more than 10 years. ``You 
     shouldn't have to worry about getting hit by a car.''

  Mr. CHAFFETZ. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise today in support of H.R. 5390 to designate the facility of the 
United States Postal Service located at 13301 Smith Road in Cleveland, 
Ohio, as the David John Donafee Post Office Building.
  I appreciate the good work that my colleague Mr. Kucinich has done on 
this and his heartfelt and sincere approach to recognizing this great 
gentleman and the tragic situation but also the great life that he led.
  Mr. Speaker, it is altogether fitting and proper that we honor Mr. 
Donafee by naming this post office in Cleveland for him. It was out of 
this post office that he was based.
  On February 14, Valentine's Day, 2008, David Donafee was delivering 
the mail on foot along his usual route in Parma Heights, Ohio, only 
minutes from the post office on Smith Road. As he was crossing York 
Road near Independence Boulevard, Mr. Donafee was struck and killed by 
a vehicle driving recklessly down the street.
  Tragically, the 42-year-old husband and father of two was run over 
only blocks from the post office to be named in his memory. Mr. Donafee 
was killed on a route that is notorious among local mail carriers for 
dangerous drivers. I hope that the tragic circumstances of Mr. 
Donafee's death will serve as a call for safer driving on all roads 
across our country.
  Prior to his career of delivering mail, Mr. Donafee had worked in a 
Cleveland area steel mill which he had told family members he felt was 
too dangerous of a place to work. His older brothers recall that David 
took the job in the post office so that he could have a safer place to 
work. Sadly, the 14-year veteran of the postal service couldn't escape 
the danger he had tried to get way from.
  Mr. Donafee is remembered by his wife as a great father and by 
coworkers as a generous man who ``would do anything for you.'' He had a 
wonderful sense of humor, and according to fellow mail carriers, he was 
the guy that made the place a little better.
  An active member of his community, Mr. Donafee was very involved with 
his town of Brunswick's youth hockey league.
  Mr. Donafee was born on April 29, 1965, in Parma, Ohio. He leaves 
behind his wife, Sandi, of almost 18 years, and his two teenage sons, 
Derek and Liam. Our heart goes out to this family.
  Mr. Speaker, it is proper that we pass this resolution to honor the 
memory of David John Donafee. I call on all Members of this House to 
support this measure and hope they know that members of the postal 
community, the greater postal community, those who work and serve every 
day in their lives, if by this small gesture we can remember them and 
give some degree of comfort to that family and that we always remember 
them.
  I yield back the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may 
consume to the gentlewoman from Ohio, Representative Betty Sutton.
  Ms. SUTTON. I thank the gentleman for the time, and I thank my 
colleague, Congressman Kucinich, for his efforts and leadership on this 
legislation.
  David John Donafee was a 42-year-old letter carrier for the U.S. 
Postal Service who lived in the congressional district that I am so 
honored to serve. He lived in Medina County, Ohio, in the city of 
Brunswick; and, sadly, David was crossing the street while walking his 
route when he was fatally hit by a car on February 14, 2008.
  David was a devoted husband, a father, a son, a brother, a brother-
in-law and uncle; and he was very involved in the community in 
children's hockey.
  For 14 years, David delivered the mail; and to paraphrase the U.S. 
Postal Service's motto, he went about his life with duty, honor, and 
pride. Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, nor the 
winds of change, nor a Nation challenged stayed David from the swift 
completion of his appointed rounds. But tragically, a reckless driver 
did.
  Our hearts remain with Sandi, his wife, his children, and the entire 
Donafee family. David's death was a tragedy that should not have 
happened. While we are honoring his life by naming the post office 
after him, as it should be, we also have a duty to remind drivers to 
yield to pedestrians crossing the street. We know that this small 
gesture will not close the hole in the Donafee family's hearts, but we 
want them to know that we care and we appreciate all that he did for 
our community. He connected us, one with another.
  With this post office naming, we will remind people of David's noble 
service, and we will remind each other of our obligation to look out 
one for another.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the House Committee on Oversight and 
Government Reform, I rise in support of H.R. 5390, a bill designating 
the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 13301 Smith 
Road in Cleveland, Ohio, as the David John Donafee Post Office 
Building.
  H.R. 5390 was introduced by my colleague, the gentleman from Ohio, 
Representative Dennis Kucinich, on May 25, 2010. It was referred to the 
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, which ordered it reported 
favorably by unanimous consent on June 7, 2010. The measure has the 
bipartisan support of 17 Members of the Ohio delegation.
  Mr. David John Donafee was a letter carrier for the United States 
Postal Service for 14 years. An active member of his community, Mr. 
Donafee volunteered with the youth hockey league in his town of Parma, 
Ohio. Tragically, he passed way on February 14, 2008, at the age of 42, 
after being struck by the driver of a car while delivering mail on his 
regular route. He is survived by his wife, Sandi, and two sons, Derek 
and Liam.
  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Donafee's untimely death during the course of his 
duties as a letter carrier is deeply saddening. Let us now pay tribute 
to this man's life through the passage of H.R. 5390. I urge my 
colleagues to join me in supporting it.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 5390.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________