[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 152 (Friday, December 12, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1809]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                       TRIBUTE TO KEITH H. DETERS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JIM JORDAN

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 11, 2014

  Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to commend to the House the 
outstanding service of Keith H. Deters, who is retiring from the Joint 
Systems Manufacturing Center in Lima, Ohio, after a distinguished 32-
year career.
   Keith began his time at JSMC as a quality engineer in 1982. For the 
last 12 years, he has served as plant manager--the longest tenured 
manager in the modern history of that facility, which is the only 
remaining heavy combat vehicle production plant on the continent. A 
hands-on manager, he noted that there has rarely been a day that he did 
not walk the production floor to interact with the plant's highly 
skilled workforce, to which he has always paid great tribute for the 
facility's success.
   In the face of challenges to JSMC's future, Keith has been a 
tireless advocate of the plant and the vital role it plays in our 
nation's defense industrial base. Under his leadership, JSMC has 
diversified beyond its traditional Abrams tank refurbishment work for 
the Army, providing high-quality combat vehicles and other products to 
other branches of the military and to our international allies.
   Keith has been instrumental in the success of Task Force LIMA 
(Linked in Mutual Alliance), established more than a decade ago to 
support and promote JSMC and Ohio's other defense facilities. He is 
well respected throughout our congressional delegation as a man of 
vision and an industry expert.
   Mr. Speaker, the Lima community will gather at Lima's City Club on 
December 17 to celebrate Keith's many contributions and distinguished 
record of service. On behalf of the people of Ohio's Fourth 
Congressional District, I am proud to join in the accolades to him and 
offer my warmest congratulations on his retirement. He and his wife, 
Donna, have my best wishes as they enter a new chapter in their lives.

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