[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 1, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E255]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          HONORING DAVID FORD

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ELIOT L. ENGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 1, 2016

  Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a good friend and 
trusted employee, David Ford, who today is being honored by the Black 
Dems of Westchester for 50 years of incredible service to the 
community.
  David has been a resident of Mt. Vernon for 53 years and an active 
member in the community his entire adult life. He has pursued his two 
great passions--community service and politics--with great vigor and 
has accomplished a great deal in both fields over a long and impressive 
career.
  First elected Chairman of the Mt. Vernon Democratic Party in 1969, 
David inherited a club in a rock bed of Republican politics. For the 
next 27 years he served as Chairman and oversaw a complete political 
switch in the area. When he left the position in 1996, every elected 
official in Mt. Vernon was a Democrat, whereas none were in 1969.
  David has also made his mark in the community through engagement with 
various civic organizations and as Commissioner of the Mt. Vernon Water 
Department, a role he served in for 33 years until his retirement in 
2009. He has been President of the Mt. Vernon Lions Club, the Mt. 
Vernon YMCA, and the Citizens Veterans Association. As Board Chairman 
of the Mt. Vernon Neighborhood Health Center for 30 years, David was 
instrumental in turning a small program with 19 employees into one of 
the largest Health Care Centers in the region, employing over 400 
people serving 40,000 patients annually. It is no wonder then why David 
has received countless honors in the community, including the Torch 
Liberty Award from the Anti-Defamation League and the ``Citizen of the 
Year'' Award from the YMCA.
  But for all of his accomplishments in the community, I will always 
value David's incredible hard work as one of my most trusted and 
talented special assistants, a role he still serves in to this day. I 
congratulate David on this well-deserved and wonderful recognition from 
the Black Dems of Westchester, and thank him personally for all he has 
done to better the Mt. Vernon community. I am proud of David for all of 
his hard work, but I am even more proud to call him a friend.

                          ____________________