[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 61 (Thursday, April 26, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E676]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING THE CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY OF THE AMERICAN RED CROSS LIFE 
                 SAVING CORPS' IN DUVAL COUNTY, FLORIDA

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ANDER CRENSHAW

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 26, 2012

  Mr. CRENSHAW. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor the 
Centennial anniversary of the American Red Cross Life Saving Corps' 
outstanding volunteer services to the beach communities in Duval 
County, my hometown. On April 29, 2012, the members of the Volunteer 
Life Saving Corps will rededicate the Station at Jacksonville Beach and 
its new training wing, which will enhance its life-saving mission. 
Created in 1912 by locals who saw the need, the U.S. Volunteer Life 
Saving Corps was established to protect lives along the Atlantic Ocean 
shoreline and became Florida's first chartered American Red Cross 
Volunteer Life Saving Corps on April 17, 1914. Today, we celebrate a 
century of uninterrupted beach guard services each Sunday and holiday 
throughout the summer season.
  Beginning with the first class, volunteers have been required to 
undergo a vigorous training regimen and meet the high physical and 
mental standards established by the Corps before they are allowed to 
stand watch on our beaches. My father, McCarthy Crenshaw, was a proud 
member of this Corps. For the past 100 years the American Red Cross 
Life Saving Corps has protected our beaches and has built a long-
lasting working relationship with our community, which benefits both 
our local residents and visitors as they enjoy the surf.
  Florida's northeast coastline has 20 miles of gorgeous beach and the 
Life Saving Corps has a long, rich history of protecting those who come 
to swim or surf. The first station built for the Corps was established 
on April 6, 1913, at Pablo Beach. The Corps was comprised of 19 
volunteers equipped with a surf boat and life lines. Over the years, 
the Corps has recorded over 1500 ocean rescues, logged 1,300,000 
volunteer hours, made 1700 life-saving assists, and administered first 
aid to 26,000. The faces of the Corps change each year, but the mission 
remains the same as the summer of 1912 when the first Life Saving Corps 
posted the beach watch.
  It is my honor to bring this historic commemoration of a century of 
service by volunteers in the American Red Cross Volunteer Life Saving 
Corps to the attention of the United States Congress and to invite 
Members to join me in extending our appreciation.

                          ____________________