[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 94 (Tuesday, June 17, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H5385-H5387]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
DR. CAMERON McKINLEY DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS VETERANS CENTER
Mr. LAMBORN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 1216) to designate the Department of Veterans Affairs Vet
Center in Prescott, Arizona, as the ``Dr. Cameron McKinley Department
of Veterans Affairs Veterans Center''.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1216
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Dr. Cameron K. McKinley was born on December 9, 1930,
in Shreveport, Louisiana.
(2) Dr. McKinley served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve in
Shreveport, Louisiana, from 1947 to 1949.
(3) Dr. McKinley served valiantly at Wiesbaden Air Force
Hospital during and after the Vietnam War, providing therapy
to military personnel and their families.
(4) Dr. McKinley served with great distinction as the Chief
of Psychology at the Veterans Affairs Hospital in Prescott,
Arizona, from 1981-1995.
(5) At the Prescott Veterans Affairs Hospital, Dr. McKinley
organized a ``Rap Group'' for Vietnam Era veterans dealing
with various degrees of post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD). That group of veterans formed the Vietnam Veterans of
America, Chapter 95.
(6) Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 95, in concert
with Dr. McKinley, local leaders, businesses and nonprofit
groups petitioned the Federal Government for a free-standing
Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC).
(7) Congress authorized 91 new rural VAMCs, among them the
Prescott Vet Center. In June of 1985, the Prescott Vet Center
opened.
(8) Dr. McKinley spent decades confronting the pressing
issue of PTSD by providing cutting-edge psychological and
neuropsychological assessments to the returning veterans of
three wars. He produced targeted action plans for veterans
suffering from PTSD, giving them tools to deal with their
afflictions and transition successfully back into civilian
life.
[[Page H5386]]
(9) Dr. McKinley's cutting-edge work has earned him
recognition from Prescott VAMC, Vietnam Veterans of America,
the Veterans' Readjustment Counseling Center, and the
Department of the Army for his outstanding work to improve
the lives of veterans of multiple generations.
(10) It is only well and fitting that as a tribute to this
remarkable person's life that Congress seek to name the
facility after the leader who was its inspiration and a
lifesaver for so many.
SEC. 2. DR. CAMERON MCKINLEY DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS
VETERANS CENTER.
(a) Designation.--The Department of Veterans Affairs Vet
Center located at 3180 Stillwater Dr. #A, Prescott, Arizona,
shall after the date of the enactment of this Act be known
and designated as the ``Dr. Cameron McKinley Department of
Veterans Affairs Veterans Center''.
(b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation,
document, paper, or other record of the United States to the
Department of Veterans Affairs Vet Center referred to in
subsection (a) shall be deemed to be a reference to the ``Dr.
Cameron McKinley Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans
Center''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Colorado (Mr. Lamborn) and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr.
Kennedy) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Colorado.
General Leave
Mr. LAMBORN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on
H.R. 1216.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Colorado?
There was no objection.
Mr. LAMBORN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1216, sponsored by my good
friend and colleague, Representative Paul Gosar of Arizona. This bill
would name the Vet Center in Prescott, Arizona, as the Dr. Cameron
McKinley Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Center.
Dr. Cameron McKinley joined the United States Marine Corps Reserve
after World War II. Following his time in uniform, Dr. McKinley pursued
a career in service to his fellow veterans, eventually becoming chief
psychologist at the VA Medical Center in Prescott, Arizona. Given his
lifelong service to the mental well-being of his fellow veterans, it is
only appropriate that the Vet Center in Prescott, Arizona, bear his
name.
I am grateful to Representative Gosar for sponsoring this legislation
and urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 1216.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may
consume.
I rise today in support of H.R. 1216, which designates the Department
of Veterans Affairs Veterans Center in Prescott, Arizona, as the Dr.
Cameron McKinley Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Center.
Dr. McKinley was a dedicated and greatly admired public servant in
Prescott, Arizona. As chief of psychology at the Prescott VA Medical
Center from 1981 to 1996, he earned the respect and honor of many
veterans' service organizations. His tireless efforts to support the
mental health needs of Arizona servicemembers and their families made a
huge difference to many veterans.
Dr. McKinley was a groundbreaker. He established a 24-hour
information center, teams of support groups, and was responsible for
establishing a veterans' mental health and rehabilitation center.
For his ``exceptionally meritorious and conspicuous service to his
community,'' he received the Military Order of the Purple Heart. He was
also made a charter member of Chapter 95 of the Vietnam Veterans of
America, who cited his dedicated efforts on their behalf.
A Shreveport, Louisiana, native, Dr. McKinley was an avid
outdoorsman, capturing the beauty he experienced fishing, hiking, and
canoeing with his camera and on canvas as an artist and calligrapher.
An avid reader of student history, Dr. McKinley also volunteered for
the Veterans History Project of the Library of Congress. He helped to
preserve firsthand accounts of veterans he met at the veterans center
he helped establish. In 1997 to 1998, he volunteered at the national
Vietnam Wall in Washington.
While Dr. McKinley is no longer with us, his longstanding commitment
to our Nation's heroes lives on. He is the ideal candidate for the
naming of the Veterans Affairs Vet Center in Prescott.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LAMBORN. I thank my colleague from Massachusetts for his gracious
words.
I would now yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman
from Arizona (Mr. Gosar), the sponsor of the legislation.
Mr. GOSAR. Mr. Speaker, I would like to quickly thank Chairman Miller
and Chairman Lamborn for their continued leadership at the House
Veterans' Affairs Committee.
Mr. Speaker, I rise before you to honor a great man who served this
Nation and its veterans with a lifetime of work. That man was Dr.
Cameron Keith McKinley. The bill being considered here today, H.R.
1216, would designate the Veterans Affairs Vet Center in Prescott,
Arizona, as the Dr. Cameron McKinley Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Center.
By way of background, Dr. McKinley served in the U.S. Marine Corps
Reserves in Shreveport, Louisiana, from 1947 to 1949. He served with
honor at the Wiesbaden Air Force Hospital during and after the Vietnam
war, providing therapy to military personnel and their families.
Later, he served with great distinction as the chief of psychology at
the Veterans Affairs hospital in Prescott, Arizona, from 1981 to 1995.
Dr. McKinley spent decades confronting the pressing issues of
posttraumatic stress disorder, also known as PTSD, by providing
cutting-edge psychological and neuropsychological assessments to the
returning veterans of three separate wars.
At the Prescott VA, Dr. McKinley organized a rap group for Vietnam
veterans dealing with varying degrees of PTSD. Dr. McKinley and his
team also made available off-station crisis intervention groups and
other specialized groups to combat veterans experiencing PTSD. He
produced targeted action plans for veterans suffering from PTSD, giving
them tools to deal with their afflictions and transitioning them
successfully back into civilian life.
Dr. McKinley and a group of veterans who have been working with him
in that area then formed the Chapter 95 of the Vietnam Veterans of
America. That VVA chapter, in concert with Dr. McKinley, local leaders,
businesses, and nonprofit groups, successfully petitioned the Federal
Government for a freestanding Veterans Affairs Medical Center in
Prescott, Arizona. That vet center opened in June of 1985.
Dr. McKinley's cutting-edge work has earned him recognition from
Veterans Affairs Medical Center, the Vietnam Veterans of America, the
Veterans' Readjustment Counseling Center, and the Department of the
Army for his outstanding work to improve the lives of veterans
of multiple generations.
Among his numerous awards, I will name a few here: Special
Recognition Award from the Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 95, in
1983; Special Recognition Award from The Military Order of the Purple
Heart; appreciation awards from the Prescott Vet Center on November 8,
1995; Certificate of Appreciation from the Veteran's Readjustment
Counseling Center on November 11, 1989; United States Department of the
Army Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Work in Support of
Combat Veterans of Desert Shield and Desert Storm and Their Families on
May 20, 1991; Special Appreciation, Prescott Vet Center, in December of
1995; and a Special Appreciation and Recognition Award for volunteer
work at the Prescott Veterans Center in 2004.
Today it is with a heavy heart that I report to this Chamber that Dr.
McKinley left this world on October 11, 2013. Thankfully, he passed
peacefully at his home, surrounded by his loving family.
I insert his obituary from the Prescott Daily Courier in the
Congressional Record.
[From the Prescott Daily Courier]
Obituary: Cameron Keith McKinley
Many longtime Prescott residents will be saddened by news
of the death of Dr. Cameron Keith McKinley, former Chief of
Psychology at the Prescott VA Medical Center
[[Page H5387]]
(1981-1996). Dr. McKinley died at his home in Evergreen,
Colo., on the morning of Oct. 11, 2013, surrounded by his
family and the beautiful pine-forested mountains filled with
the many birds and animals he enjoyed watching.
He was born on Dec. 9, 1930, in Shreveport, La., to William
Samuel McKinley Sr. and Goldia Simmons McKinley. He attended
Louisiana Tech University and Centenary College and received
a B.A. degree. He earned an M.A. and Ph.D. in clinical
psychology from the University of Houston.
Dr. McKinley completed an internship and residency at the
University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, where he
stayed on for another six years in clinical practice. For the
next nine years, he and his family lived in Wiesbaden,
Germany, during which time he established a Child & Family
Treatment program at the U.S. Air Force Hospital. From there,
the next assignment and home was Prescott, Ariz.
He was honored by many veterans organizations, among them
the U.S. Army Reserve for his support of active military,
veterans and their families, and for establishing a 24-hour
information center, teams of support groups, a successful
fundraising event, and a veterans mental health and
rehabilitation center. He received the Military Order of the
Purple Heart for exceptionally meritorious and conspicuous
service to his community, fellow citizens and veterans. He
was recognized by Vietnam Veterans of America as a charter
member of Chapter 95 in Prescott, acknowledging his dedicated
efforts on their behalf.
Cam volunteered at the National Vietnam Wall in Washington
from 1997-1998, and also at the VA Hospital in Prescott for
the Veterans History project and at the Vet Center that he
established. In 2012, after letters and urging from the
community, U.S. Congressman Paul Gosar introduced House
Resolution 1743, a bill that would name the Veteran Affairs
Vet Center in Prescott the Dr. Cameron K. McKinley Vet
Center. Rep. Gosar introduced this bill to honor a
groundbreaking health provider and true hero. It passed in
the House of Representatives but stalled in the Senate
because federal buildings are only named after someone who
has died. Efforts to name the Vet Center in honor of Dr.
McKinley will be renewed in the near future by those who knew
him and respected his deep commitment to our military
veterans.
Dr. McKinley married Anne Hinton McKinley April 9, 1955. He
is survived by his wife; his daughter Carol; his son, John,
and their spouses, Mark Harris and Mary McKinley; his
grandchildren, Adam and Paige Roberts, Jeremy and Tim Lisby,
and Cameron and Elizabeth McKinley; great-granddaughter
Jillian Lisby; sister Nadine McKinley Runsick; nephews Alan
and Joel Jessup; and niece Kristina McKinley Estes McKinley.
His father, mother and brother, Bill, preceded him in death.
His love of family was most important and brought him great
peace toward the end of his life.
Cam, as he was known to those close to him, loved canoeing,
hiking, fishing--the great outdoors. He took pride and
interest in his Scottish heritage. He read voraciously, wrote
his memoirs and expressed his artistic talents through
painting, calligraphy, and his passion, photography. He
captured the beauty of nature through the lens of his camera.
For those who knew Cam McKinley, his qualities of
leadership, courage, humor and resilience stood out. He was
generous of spirit, giving himself in service to others. We
will remember his laugh and the twinkle in his eye. He will
be missed by many and we are all better for having known him.
The family suggests memorial donations be sent to the
Intrepid Fallen Heroes fund (fallenheroesfund.org), or the
Mount Evans Hospice Inc. for their outstanding and loving
care, 3081 Bergen Park Drive, Evergreen, CO 80439.
Mr. GOSAR. Mr. Speaker, so it is only well and fitting, as a tribute
to this remarkable man's life, Congress names the facility after the
very leader who was its inspiration and who was a lifesaver for so
many.
I am also saddened that we could not take up this bill and pass it
into law sooner so that Dr. McKinley could live to see how this
hallowed body shows its appreciation for his work. I hope his family
may share a few smiles as the bill moves forward in the legislative
process. I would also like to think that Dr. McKinley is smiling down
upon us right now.
I pose a challenge to my colleagues, Members of the executive branch,
and anyone else listening. Dr. McKinley strove for exemplary service to
his veteran colleagues. In naming this building after Dr. McKinley, we
hold his life's work in the highest esteem. We hold it in this way to
show all Americans what it means to lead a life of service to others,
and so we shall all strive to follow in his footsteps.
The challenge before us is to provide timely, quality, patient-
centered, and patient-friendly care to each and every veteran. Most
importantly, it is long past time that the Federal Government follow
his example and do the very thing that he did with all his veteran
patients. The Federal Government must listen.
Today, I thank the Veterans' Affairs Committee for supporting this
bill. I thank my Arizona colleagues for their support in being original
cosponsors of this bill. I thank all of the veterans' service
organizations for their support of this bill and all they do for our
vets.
Finally, I want to thank a very special organization known as Friends
of Camp McKinley for their continued advocacy on behalf of such a great
man.
I ask my colleagues to pass this bill.
Mr. LAMBORN. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Arizona
for this excellent piece of legislation and his work on behalf of
veterans in his district.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers at this time. I
urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1216, and I yield back the balance
of my time.
Mr. LAMBORN. Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support H.R. 1216,
and with that, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Lamborn) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 1216.
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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