[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 171 (Wednesday, November 30, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Page S6618]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                   REMEMBERING DAVID ``BOO'' FERRISS

 Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I wish to recognize the life and 
service of Major League All-Star pitcher and longtime head baseball 
coach at Delta State University, David ``Boo'' Ferriss, who passed away 
on November 24, 2016.
  Boo Ferriss was born in Shaw, MS, and was raised in the Mississippi 
Delta region. He joined the baseball team as a student at Mississippi 
State University in 1941 before signing a Major League contract with 
the Boston Red Sox organization in 1942. Ferriss's early career with 
the Red Sox included a 2-year hiatus to serve in World War II. 
Discharged in 1945, he was called up to play for the Red Sox, helping 
lead the team to the 1946 World Series. Despite suffering a shoulder 
injury in 1947, Ferriss played for the Red Sox until 1950, finishing 
with a 65-30 record as a pitcher.
  Following his retirement from professional baseball, Ferriss went on 
to become the head coach of the Delta State University baseball team, a 
position he held with great success for nearly 26 years. He led the 
Statesmen to three Division II World Series and four Gulf South 
Conference Championships. Induction into the Mississippi Sports Hall of 
Fame and the Red Sox Hall of Fame are among the numerous awards made to 
honor Ferriss's achievements. In 2003, the Mississippi Sports Hall of 
Fame established the Ferriss Trophy, which has become the Heisman 
Trophy for Mississippi college baseball players.
  Boo Ferriss's accomplishments extended beyond the ballfield. He was 
an active member of the Covenant Presbyterian Church in Cleveland, MS, 
and a founder of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in Mississippi. 
He was a dedicated family man, married for 67 years to his wife, 
Miriam. They raised two children, Dr. David Ferriss and Margaret 
Ferriss White, and have two grandchildren and three great-
grandchildren. Coach Ferriss will be remembered as a great 
Mississippian who dedicated his life to the game that he loved and to a 
generation of players that he educated on the field and in life.
  For myself and all those who knew Boo Ferriss, I commemorate his 
years of service and a life well lived.

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