[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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