[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 157 (Monday, October 26, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1531]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     LIFELONG ATHLETE: MARK SERTICH

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. RICHARD M. NOLAN

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, October 26, 2015

  Mr. NOLAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Mark Sertich of 
Duluth, Minnesota, who continues to celebrate victories on the ice at 
ninety-four years old.
   Mark, who during World War II fought in General George Patton's 
Third Army liberating concentration camps, still puts on his ice skates 
several times a week to play a pick-up game of hockey. At fifty-nine 
years old he ran his first marathon and did not stop there. As of 
today, he has finished five marathons and eleven inline skating 
marathons.
   Ice hockey remains his favorite sport, which is why Mark plays every 
week--no excuses. Forty-two years ago Mark began competing in the 
annual Snoopy's Senior World Tournament with the late cartoonist 
Charles Schulz. The two played on the same line together for many years 
and became good friends.
   After taking a hard hit on the ice, resulting in two fractured ribs 
and a punctured lung, doctors said would keep him out of the game for 
at least six weeks. Mark was back on the ice in just three. His 
commitment makes him a role model for us all. When asked in a recent 
interview how he stays motivated to play every week, he responded, ``I 
say the most important step is the first one out the door.''
   I congratulate Mark for not only continuing to play his favorite 
sport, but also for his victories on the ice, including winning paid 
skating fees for life in a bet with his teammates when he was eighty 
years old. Hopefully when I am ninety-four years old I can still lace 
up my skates and hold my own with players my grandchildren's age--and 
win a few games too.

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