[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 89 (Thursday, June 20, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E951]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                IN HONOR OF ANDREW ``ANDY'' A. D'ARRIGO

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 20, 2013

  Mr. FARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Andrew ``Andy'' A. 
D'Arrigo, on the occasion of his recognition by the Grower-Shipper 
Association with the E.E. ``Gene'' Harden Award for Lifetime 
Achievement. Andy is a remarkable American whose hard work and 
innovation has helped to shape the Salinas Valley and build one of the 
largest and most innovative family-owned produce companies in the 
world.
  The son of Italian immigrants, Andy was born in Stockton, California, 
in 1924. His family later moved to the Salinas Valley where his father 
Stefano and uncle Andrew began a small produce business in 1932. The 
advent of new ice and refrigeration technologies sparked a boom in 
California's produce industry and the D'Arrigo brothers stepped into 
this opportunity and helped push the envelope even further. Andy 
essentially grew up in the produce business. Indeed, the D'Arrigo 
Brothers iconic ``Andy Boy'' featured Andy's face and name. In his 
spare time, Andy was an active Boy Scout, even earning Eagle Scout 
status in high school. During WWII, Andy served in the Navy. Once out 
of the service, Andy earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the 
University of California at Davis and soon after married his wife of 64 
years, Phyllis.
  After the death of his father in 1951, Andy took over the West Coast 
operations of the D'Arrigo Bros. Company. The business had been built 
on shipping produce east from California. Under the D'Arrigos' 
leadership, it introduced new crops to the American menu, including 
broccoli, broccoli rabe, and cactus pears, to name a few. Under Andy's 
leadership, the company grew into a full-service, vertically 
integrated, produce supplier--growing, marketing, and shipping fresh 
fruits and vegetables across North America, and beyond. In 
acknowledgement of the agricultural expertise of the D'Arrigo family, 
three generations of the D'Arrigo family, including Andy, have been 
elected president and other leadership positions of the Western Growers 
Association, the Grower-Shipper Association, and other agriculture 
industry organizations.
  The D'Arrigo family has always believed in giving back to their 
community. Over the years they have supported organizations such as 
Natividad Hospital, the United Way, the Boys and Girls Club, the 
American Cancer Society, the National Steinbeck Center, the Rancho 
Cielo Youth Campus, the YMCA, and the Breast Cancer Research 
Foundation, among others. As adoptive parents themselves, Andy and his 
wife are strong supporters of the Salinas based Kinship Center adoption 
services center, including its special needs counseling clinic that 
bears the D'Arrigo name.
  Mr. Speaker, I know I speak for the whole House in commending Andy 
D'Arrigo for helping Americans eat better food and the people of the 
Central Coast live better lives.

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