[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 180 (Monday, November 6, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1509-E1510]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       IN HONOR OF WILLIAM M. FLY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. KEVIN BRADY

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, November 6, 2017

  Mr. BRADY of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on November 13, William M. Fly will 
celebrate his 100th birthday in a newly refurbished home thanks to the 
selfless efforts of volunteers from across the country, responding to 
the damages caused by Hurricane Harvey.
  Over the course of a century, Bill, as his friends and family know 
him, has traveled the country and the world, but his home has always 
been in the State of Texas.
  Following his graduation from the University of Texas in 1940, Bill 
joined the U.S. Army Air Force, where he served honorably as a First 
Lieutenant in the European Theater of the Second World War.
  Upon completing his time in the service, Bill and his wife, Mary 
Beth, moved to Houston, TX, where he began a thirty-seven year career 
in the oil and gas industry. Despite moving to

[[Page E1510]]

New York City, Chicago, and St. Louis during his career, Bill and his 
wife of sixty-nine years returned to Texas in 1972, to settle in Harris 
County.
  Blessed with four loving daughters, eleven grandchildren, twenty-five 
great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren, Bill and his 
loving wife lived together for another forty-five years, until Mary 
Beth passed away on May 13th, 2017.
  In August of 2017, the flooding brought by Hurricane Harvey left over 
three feet of water in Bill's family home of over forty years, severely 
damaging his house and ruining irreplaceable mementos of his and Mary 
Beth's family.
  In response to this tragedy, volunteers led by former Navy SEAL, 
Markus Luttrell and his wife, Melanie, rallied around Bill and made it 
their mission to rebuild his home by his 100th birthday.
  Just two months after the effort began, people from across the 
country raised almost $90,000, $15,000 more than their original goal, 
to fund the recovery. Thanks to the tireless efforts of these 
volunteers, Bill will be able to return to his home by his birthday.
  As he settles into his newly refurbished home to celebrate his 100th 
birthday, I join Bill's family, his friends, and his community to thank 
the volunteers who quickly returned him to his home and wish him a 
happy birthday as he begins his second century of life.

                          ____________________