[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 65 (Thursday, April 15, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H1835]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING CAPTAIN PATRICK C. POLIS AS TENNESSEE'S SECOND DISTRICT 
                          VETERAN OF THE MONTH

  (Mr. BURCHETT asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BURCHETT. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Captain Patrick C. 
Polis as Tennessee's Second District Veteran of the Month.
  Captain Polis was drafted into the United States Army in 1966 as a 
private, then attended Officer Candidate School and earned the rank of 
second lieutenant. He served two combat tours of duty, Madam Speaker, 
during the Vietnam war, rising to the rank of captain during the war. 
He was later awarded the Bronze Star Medal and Army Commendation Medal 
for his service.
  He left the Army in 1974 and, regrettably, he attended the University 
of Alabama, being we are from Tennessee, but he did graduate magna cum 
laude in 1981.
  Following a career in business management, he returned to school at 
the Asbury Theological Seminary and earned a master's degree in 
divinity in 1993. He used his religious education to serve as a pastor 
at the United Methodist Church in Knoxville from 1993 to 2019. He also 
served as chaplain for the Knoxville Police Department.
  In 2019, he was inducted into the Army Officer Candidate School Hall 
of Fame at Fort Benning, Georgia.
  Captain Polis and his wife, Sandra, still reside in Knoxville. He 
remains active in the veteran community through the Vietnam Veterans of 
America, serving as president of the Captain Bill Robinson Chapter 
1078.
  I thank Captain Polis so much for his service to our country. It is 
my honor to recognize him today on the floor of the House of 
Representatives.
  Madam Speaker, he is just an outstanding individual.

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