[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 129 (Friday, September 21, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1616]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    RECOGNIZING SERGEANT PAUL ATKINSON OF MARBLEHEAD, MASSACHUSETTS

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                          HON. JOHN F. TIERNEY

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 21, 2012

  Mr. TIERNEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Sergeant Paul Atkinson 
of Marblehead, Massachusetts, for his efforts to assist hundreds of 
orphans in Afghanistan while serving with the Massachusetts National 
Guard.
  It was brought to my attention by a fellow resident of Marblehead, 
Mark Brings, and highlighted in an article published in the Salem News, 
that while stationed as a sergeant in charge of maintenance at Camp 
Phoenix in Afghanistan, Sergeant Atkinson secured the delivery of 
hundreds of mattresses and bed frames to two orphanages in Afghanistan 
which care for more than 700 children.
  The efforts of Sergeant Atkinson extended from Afghanistan to 
Marblehead where local residents, including Mark Brings and his family 
and Sergeant Atkinson's wife, Maria, worked to collect, clean and 
deliver hundreds of sheets and blankets to the orphanages.
  I am pleased to recognize Sergeant Atkinson and the members of the 
community for volunteering their time providing these critical items to 
children in need, and I thank Sergeant Atkinson and all the members of 
our Nation's armed forces for their service to the country.

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