[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 88 (Wednesday, June 19, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Page S4671]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
MARGARET NORVELL COMMISSIONING CEREMONY
Ms. LANDRIEU. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed
in the Record a speech I delivered on June 1, 2013 in New Orleans, LA
to commemorate the commissioning of the Coast Guard Fast Response
Cutter Margaret Norvell.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
I would like to thank Vice Admiral Parker, commander of the
Atlantic Area for the Coast Guard, Rear Admiral Baumgartner,
commander of the 7th District who's accepting delivery of
this cutter and 17 others, Rear Admiral Cook, our new
District 8 commander which is headquartered here in New
Orleans, Boysie and Chris Bollinger and Nickie Candies for
inviting me to today's ceremony and all the work they do to
make Louisiana proud, the men and women of the Coast Guard
who serve with incredible bravery and distinction, the
workforce of Bollinger Shipyards that does work everyday
building strong, reliable boats to keep our Nation safe and
secure, and I would like to extend a special welcome to the
family members of Margaret Norvell, who are with us here
today, as they were for the Fleet Dedication ceremony last
March in Lockport, the Heroes dinner at the World War II
Museum, and the opening of the New Canal Lighthouse Museum
and Education Center in April. I'm pleased to share the stage
with two of Margaret's great-grandchildren, Barbara Norvell
Perrone, the ship's sponsor, and Maj. Michael Norvell, who is
following his family's proud military tradition and currently
serves as a commissioned officer in the Louisiana Air
National Guard. I'd also like to acknowledge Councilwoman
Clarkson for being here today and for her continued support
of the Coast Guard.
I'm very honored to be here to commission the Coast Guard
Cutter Margaret Norvell. It is the 5th Sentinel Class Cutter
in a planned fleet of 58 ships that Bollinger will build for
the Coast Guard, continuing Louisiana's proud tradition of
building ships for our Nation's military. Whether they're
engaged in a dangerous rescue, pursuing and interdicting drug
smugglers, or responding to a severe hurricane, these ships
and their crews will play an integral role in the security of
our Nation.
Bollinger Shipyards is an ideal place to construct these
ships. Since 1946, Bollinger has been a family owned and
operated Louisiana business with a well-earned reputation for
superior quality, value, and service. Chris, I want to thank
you and particularly the hard working men and women from
Bollinger Shipyards for the Margaret Norvell. I am certain
she will make us all proud during the course of her service
in the Coast Guard, just as her namesake did. I also want to
thank all of you for the Cutter Paul Clark, which was
delivered on May 18, marking Bollinger's sixth FRC delivery
to the Coast Guard, every one of which has been on-time and
on-budget.
These Sentinel Class Cutters are replacing the 110-foot
Island Class Patrol Boats that were also built at Bollinger
between 1984 and 1992. Bollinger's design for the Fast
Response Cutter beat out 26 other competitors. The company's
longstanding relationship with the Coast Guard is a win-win
for Louisiana workers as well as the Nation's security, and
I'm proud to be in a position to advocate for continued
funding for the construction and acquisition of these highly
capable boats.
This ship we are commissioning here today is a fitting
testament to Margaret Norvell's 41 years in the U.S.
Lighthouse Service from 1891 to 1932. She was one of only 141
women who served as lighthouse keepers, and she assumed her
position just as so many other women did, after her husband
Louis, the original keeper of the Head of Passes Light at the
mouth of the Mississippi River, tragically drowned and left
her with two children, ages 1 and 3.
Margaret assumed the post for 5 years before her
appointment as keeper of the Port of Pontchartrain Light in
1896. She distinguished herself there in 1903 after a
hurricane battered the town of Buras in Plaquemines Parish
and left 200 residents without refuge. Margaret took every
single one of them in and provided them with shelter. In
1924, she was transferred to the New Canal Light Station. Two
years later in 1926, using her small rowboat, she battled a
merciless squall for 2 hours on Lake Pontchartrain and
successfully rescued a downed naval aviator from the wreckage
of his airplane in the water. Margaret retired in 1932 and
passed away two years later.
The lighthouse from which she performed her heroic rescue
dated back to 1839, but it was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina
4 years after the Coast Guard decommissioned it from service.
With support from the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation,
the New Canal Lighthouse was rebuilt and reopened in April as
a museum and educational center to commemorate the role of
the Lighthouse Service and the brave men and women like
Margaret who served in it. Margaret once remarked, ``There
isn't anything unusual in a woman keeping a light in her
window to guide men folks home. I just happen to keep a
bigger light than most women because I have got to see that
so many men get safely home.''
She is the first enlisted woman from the Coast Guard to be
honored with a ship in her name. She was also a New Orleans
native who distinguished herself through heroic rescues that
took place right here in Louisiana. For all these reasons,
I'm very grateful for the opportunity to join Margaret's
family in honoring her service to Louisiana and our Nation,
as well as the leadership and courage that she and 140 other
women demonstrated in the history of the U.S. Lighthouse
Service along with more than 8,000 women who are on active
and reserve duty in the Coast Guard today. Margaret helped to
blaze the trail, and our nation is safer and stronger today
because of it.
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