[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 58 (Tuesday, April 4, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E448]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      HONORING PERCY NORWOOD, JR.

                                  _____
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, April 4, 2017

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Percy 
Norwood, Jr., who is a retired Captain, Commanding Officer, and 
Executive Officer of the United States Coast Guard.
  Mr. Norwood and his wife, Marie, have 36\1/2\ years of marriage and 
live in Carrollton, Mississippi. They are the proud parents of four 
adult children: Angelia, Kelvin, Lindsey Marie and Matthew, 
grandparents of five children: Devon, Shynell, Nathaniel II, Alexis and 
Camerin; and great-grandparents of one child, Alexander.
  Percy Norwood, Jr. retired from the United States Coast Guard in 2000 
with the rank of Captain after almost 30 years of outstanding and 
dedicated service to our nation. At the time of his retirement, he held 
three key positions: Commanding Officer of Coast Guard Headquarters 
Support Command, Commanding Officer of Coast Guard Headquarters Staff, 
and Executive Officer of Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, DC. 
Mr. Norwood also served as the first Director of the Coast Guard 
Recruiting Center from July 1995 to May 1998, where he was responsible 
for recruiting the best men and women to meet the Coast Guard's 
military personnel needs. During this assignment, Mr. Norwood led 
recruiters in creating the most diverse Coast Guard in our nation's 
history.
  In 1993, Mr. Norwood served as team leader for the Vice President of 
the United States' National Performance Review Task Force where his 
team explored ways to improve Coast Guard fisheries law enforcement 
outcomes. As a result of his team's efforts, the Coast Guard maximized 
the use of technology to drastically reduce illegal fishing in U.S. 
territorial waters. While pursuing his Coast Guard career, Norwood 
performed numerous other jobs that included search and rescue; oil and 
hazardous material cleanup; conducting investigations, evaluations and 
training; planning, logistics, budgeting and personnel support; and 
teaching Chemistry courses at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.
  Mr. Norwood's education and training includes: graduating from 
Marshall High School in North Carrollton, MS in 1964 as class 
Valedictorian; a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Alcorn State 
University in 1968; a Master of Science Degree in Analytical Chemistry 
from Tuskegee University in 1970, and a Master of Science Degree in 
Human Resource Management from the Naval Postgraduate School in 
Monterey, CA in 1980. His thesis entitled, ``A Comparison of the Fit 
Between the Organization Climate of the Coast Guard, the Job/Career 
Expectations of Black College Graduates and their Perceptions about the 
Coast Guard'' provided the basis for several initiatives that would 
ultimately change the racial and gender makeup of the Coast Guard. Mr. 
Norwood is a 1977 graduate of the Defense Race Relations Institute. He 
is a 1992 through 1993 Department of Transportation and Council for 
Excellence in Government Fellow and a past member of the Senior Fellows 
Group whose focus is improving government.
  Mr. Norwood received numerous personal military awards that included 
the Legion of Merit, two Meritorious Service Medals, two Coast Guard 
Commendation Medals, and the Coast Guard Achievement Medal. His non-
military awards include the National Image Incorporated Award (1993), 
the National Naval Officers Association's (NNOA) Dorie Miller Award 
(1993), the National Association For Equal Opportunity in Higher 
Education (NAFEO) Distinguished Alumni Award (1995), and the NAACP Roy 
Wilkins Renown Service Award (1995). Mr. Norwood was inducted into the 
Alcorn State University Hall of Honor in 2006 for his outstanding 
leadership and service and elected by his fellow alumni as Alcornite of 
the Year in 2008 as Alcorn State University's most distinguished 
Alumnus. Three of his four siblings (Laura, Willie and James) are also 
graduates of Alcorn State University.
  Mr. Norwood is a past president of the Metropolitan Washington, DC 
Area and the St. Louis, MO Alcorn Alumni Chapters, and the Immediate 
Past National President of the Alcorn State University National Alumni 
Association. He is a past Vice President for Membership, Eastern Region 
Vice President, and National President of the National Naval Officers 
Association. He is a member of Rho Gamma Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi 
Alpha Fraternity, Inc. where he chairs their Project Alpha Mentoring 
Program and serves as Chairman of the Greenwood Alphas Foundation. He 
also serves as President of the Board of Directors for Leflore-Carroll-
Montgomery Counties Memorial Garden Cemetery, Recording Steward of Helm 
Chapel Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, and President of the 
Montgomery-Carroll-Grenada County Alcorn Alumni Chapter. He was 
recently appointed by the Carroll County Board of Supervisors as the 
Veterans Service Officer for Carroll County where he is helping 
veterans get the services and support they have earned and need. He 
also mentors two young men who are students at J.Z. George High School 
and tutors two Middle School students and one elementary school 
student.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Mr. Percy 
Norwood, Jr., a Captain, Leader and Educator for his dedication to 
serving others and giving back to the African American community.

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