[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 150 (Wednesday, November 28, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H6477-H6478]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRINKA DAVIS VETERANS VILLAGE

  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 6374) to designate the facility of the Department 
of Veterans Affairs located at 180 Martin Drive in Carrollton, Georgia, 
as the ``Trinka Davis Veterans Village.''
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 6374

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

     SECTION 1. TRINKA DAVIS VETERANS VILLAGE.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the Department of 
     Veterans Affairs located at 180 Martin Drive in Carrollton, 
     Georgia, shall be known and designated as the ``Trinka Davis 
     Veterans Village''.
       (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 ``Trinka Davis Veterans Village''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Miller) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Brown) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.
  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  The legislation before us today does, in fact, name the VA community-
based outpatient clinic in Carrollton, Georgia, as the Trinka Davis 
Veterans Village.
  Trinka Davis was a Carroll County business leader who desired that 
her estate be used to provide support and assistance to veterans and 
their families. Following her death in 2008, the Trinka Davis 
Foundation contacted the Atlanta VA Medical Center and determined that 
there was a need for an outpatient clinic in Carrollton, Georgia, to 
better serve the 3,500 veterans in northwest Georgia. As such, the 
foundation worked with local VA leaders to plan, design, and construct 
the clinic, and in September presented the $17 million gift in kind to 
the VA. The 73,883 square foot clinic, which opened to veterans in 
September, provides primary, home-based, and mental health care and a 
number of specialty services, including physical and occupational 
therapy. It encompasses a 42-bed community living center that provides 
rehabilitation services and long-term care.
  She was not a veteran herself, but Ms. Davis' generous gift was 
already improving the health and daily lives of Georgia's veterans and 
their families, and will no doubt continue to do so for generations to 
come.
  It is only proper that the facility that she provided the funding for 
bear her name as recognition of her outstanding service to the veterans 
of the State of Georgia. It's received the unanimous support of the 
Georgia delegation, and Georgia's major veterans service organizations 
have all supported it. Also, I would like to note that, according to a 
preliminary cost estimate provided by CBO, it represents a minimal cost 
of less than $500,000 to the Federal Government.

[[Page H6478]]

  This legislation is sponsored by my good friend and colleague, Dr. 
Phil Gingrey, and I want to thank Dr. Gingrey for his leadership in 
spearheading this provision and for his steadfast support of veterans, 
not only in the State of Georgia, but across this Nation.
  I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 6374, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I rise today to offer my support of H.R. 6374, a bill to name a 
facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs in Carrollton, Georgia, 
as the Trinka Davis Veterans Village.
  Ms. Davis served with great distinction as a businesswoman, but one 
of her greatest contributions to our Nation can be seen in her 
commitment to the care and well-being of the servicemen and -women of 
our country.
  As a teenager, Ms. Davis paid a visit to Pearl Harbor in Hawaii and 
was touched by the sacrifice of American servicemembers. Her brother, 
Poncet Davis, Jr., then went on to serve in the United States Army. 
Later, after her successful career in the textile and rubber industry, 
Ms. Davis continued her work helping wounded veterans and their 
families. In 2004, she founded the Trinka Davis Foundation to honor 
service veterans, particularly in the State of Georgia.
  I commend the foundation and the Atlanta VA for working closely 
together to build this facility, which will serve as a community living 
center and a medical office to provide primary health care and other 
important services to over 3,000 veterans.
  While Ms. Davis is no longer with us, her longstanding commitments to 
our Nation's heroes live on and make her a perfect candidate for the 
naming of the Veterans Village in Carrollton.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I want to now yield as much time 
as he may consume to the sponsor of this piece of legislation, the 
gentleman from Georgia, Dr. Gingrey.
  Mr. GINGREY of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 
6374, a bill to designate the Department of Veterans Affairs facility 
in Carrollton, Georgia, as the Trinka Davis Veterans Village.
  Mr. Speaker, much of what I'm going to say has already been said by 
the distinguished chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee, the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Miller), as well as the ranking member, the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Brown), but I thank them for giving me 
the opportunity to repeat and maybe elaborate a bit because it deserves 
to be said.
  Katherine--better then known as Trinka--Davis, was a businesswoman 
from Carroll County who founded the Trinka Davis Foundation back in 
2004 after realizing the struggles many servicemen and -women faced 
upon returning from both Iraq and Afghanistan. As has been stated, 
though not a veteran herself, through her generosity, Ms. Davis 
performed an outstanding service for the veterans of northwest Georgia.
  Mr. Speaker, Trinka made note of the reports of difficulties that 
many returning veterans and their respective families were facing: loss 
of limbs, traumatic brain injuries, post traumatic stress syndrome, 
unemployment, and loss of their homes.
  Although she is no longer with us, her memory lives on. Trinka Davis 
left almost her entire estate, over $18 million, to this foundation, 
which has used it to construct a first-class health facility to aid our 
wounded warriors in their recovery and treatment. I've been there. I've 
seen it. I was there at the ribbon cutting ceremony just this past 
year. It's a beautiful facility in my district in Carrollton.
  Mr. Speaker, with the war in Afghanistan, a recent one in Iraq, and 
unrest around the globe, the United States has more than 196,000 active 
duty servicemen and -women that put their lives on the line night and 
day to protect our families and our freedoms. These men and women 
accepted the call of duty, leaving behind their loved ones and life as 
they know it, to protect the lives of us and so many others.
  When our soldiers return from battle, sometimes they don't get the 
support and the assistance that they deserve. Simply put, we owe them 
more. Just as they have answered the call to serve our country, we must 
answer the call to serve them.

                              {time}  1330

  This is what Trinka Davis did and why I rise today, and I am so 
honored to be a part of the naming of this Carrollton VA facility in 
her honor.
  Thanks to Trinka's generosity and the tireless dedication of her 
foundation, the new clinic was donated to the Department of Veterans 
Affairs just this past August. The doors were opened for veterans to 
receive outpatient treatment on September 24, 2012, and in the coming 
months the clinic will also include a 42-bed community living center. 
While providing a variety of services, including primary care, physical 
therapy, and outpatient mental health services, the facility will serve 
3,000 veterans and will allow them to receive treatment closer to their 
homes.
  I believe that, like our veterans, Ms. Davis is, indeed, a hero. She 
recognized the needs of our veterans, and she worked tirelessly to meet 
them. The Trinka Davis Foundation ensured that Ms. Davis' commitment to 
the veterans and to their families in the Carrollton community and 
beyond would be preserved through the construction of this health 
facility.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Trinka Davis' selfless 
actions by supporting H.R. 6374.
  Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for 
time. I urge support for H.R. 6374, and I yield back the balance of my 
time.


                             General Leave

  Mr. MILLER of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend 
their remarks on H.R. 6374.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. MILLER of Florida. I encourage all Members to support this 
legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Miller) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 6374.
  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.

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