[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 65 (Wednesday, May 9, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E738]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 IN RECOGNITION OF THE DISTINGUISHED PUBLIC SERVICE OF C. DONALD BABERS

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. MICHAEL C. BURGESS

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Wednesday, May 9, 2012

  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a distinguished 
federal public servant, Mr. C. Donald Babers, as he retires from his 
position as the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's 
Southwest Regional Administrator on June 1, 2012. Over the last 42 
years, all of it with HUD, he has provided dedicated service to the 
American public in a variety of positions.
  Mr. Babers began his career in June 1970 as an unpaid intern in HUD's 
Fort Worth Office. He then moved on to Little Rock, Arkansas working in 
the local field office as an Equal Opportunity Specialist before being 
appointed the Acting Director of the Office of Fair Housing and Equal 
Opportunity. He was next assigned to the Dallas Field Office where he 
held a number of positions, including 15 years as the Field Office 
Director.
  In 2002, he was promoted again, this time to the position of Deputy 
Regional Director in the Fort Worth Regional Office. In 2006, he 
assumed additional responsibilities when he was appointed by the 
Secretary of HUD as the Recovery Advisor and Chairman of the Board for 
the Housing Authority of New Orleans, where he oversaw recovery efforts 
due to Hurricane Katrina. On May 27, 2010, he was recognized again for 
his hard work and dedication to the mission of HUD with a promotion to 
Regional Administrator of HUD's Region VI in Fort Worth. In this 
position, he is responsible for managing the operations of the Fort 
Worth office as well as eleven field offices in Texas, New Mexico, 
Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana.
  Over the years, Mr Babers has been the recipient of many prestigious 
awards for his work. In 2006, he received the Presidential Rank Award 
for Meritorious Executive, one of the highest awards given to career 
civil servants and restricted to no more than five percent of 
executives per year. In 2007, he also received the Interagency 
Resources Management Conference Award from the General Services 
Administration, which is given to those government employees who have 
shown exceptional ability to operate across organizational boundaries 
and improve the public's experience with the government.
  As Mr. Babers retires from a long and dedicated career, I would like 
to recognize his service and congratulate him on a job well done. His 
experience and skills will certainly be missed by both the employees he 
worked with and the citizens he served. I wish Don Babers and his wife 
Sheila a long and happy retirement.

                          ____________________