[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 75 (Wednesday, May 23, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S3512]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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             TRIBUTE TO REAR ADMIRAL CHRISTOPHER C. COLVIN

 Mr. BEGICH. Mr. President, today I wish to recognize a friend 
of Alaska for his extraordinary 34 years of service to the U.S. Coast 
Guard and our Nation. In Alaska, we know him best for his service as 
the commander of the Coast Guard 17th District, but he has served 
valiantly across our Nation throughout his long and distinguished 
career. On June 1, he will retire as the deputy commander of the Coast 
Guard's Pacific Area Command in Alameda, CA.
  Rear Admiral Colvin is a native of Erie, PA. He graduated from the 
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1976 with a bachelor of 
arts degree in political science and entered Coast Guard Officer 
Candidate School in November 1978, earning his commission in March 
1979. His 34-year Coast Guard career has included a variety of 
operational and staff assignments on both coasts. He served aboard 
eight Coast Guard cutters and commanded three. In 2003 he commanded 
Coast Guard Cutter DALLAS, WHEC 716, while attached to the USS Truman/
USS Roosevelt battle force conducting combat operations during the 
first 6 months of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 2004, Rear Admiral Colvin 
served as commander of Coast Guard forces off Haiti and as the maritime 
component commander to Joint Task Force Haiti, helping prevent a mass 
migration and preserving order in Port au Prince Harbor following the 
unexpected departure of former Haitian President Aristide. He is a 1999 
graduate of the Naval War College in Newport, RI, earning a master of 
arts degree in national security and strategic studies. His staff 
expertise is in cutter management, operations, strategy, and readiness. 
He has enforced U.S. sovereignty in the maritime arena by interdicting 
illegal drugs, detaining illegal migrants, seizing foreign fishing 
vessels, and saving lives.
  Rear Admiral Colvin's first flag assignment was as the deputy 
director of operations for U.S. Northern Command in Colorado Springs, 
CO. From there he was assigned as the commander of the 17th Coast Guard 
District in Juneau, AK, from 2009 to 2011, when he was responsible for 
Coast Guard operations throughout Alaska and the U.S. Arctic. He 
currently serves as the deputy commander of the Coast Guard's Pacific 
Area Command in Alameda, CA. His many notable accomplishments from his 
current assignment include coordinating USCGC HEALY's historic 2011 to 
2012 icebreaking mission to mitigate a critical fuel shortage in the 
city of Nome, AK.
  Rear Admiral Colvin married his wife Kristin in 1985, and they have 
two children. Their son Mark is a high school freshman and their 
daughter Meagan is a student at the University of Central Florida. Rear 
Admiral Colvin's parents are Dr. Charles and Evelyn Colvin of Erie, PA.
  Mr. President, on behalf of the State of Alaska, I ask my 
distinguished colleagues to join me in recognizing Rear Admiral 
Colvin's exceptional career. We owe him a debt of gratitude for his 
commitment to the Coast Guard and to our Nation. We wish him well in 
his retirement.

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