[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 192 (Monday, December 12, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H9649-H9650]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       RECOGNIZING CITY OF JOLIET

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Foster) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FOSTER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the great city 
of Joliet, Illinois. For the last 10 years, I have had the honor of 
representing Joliet and the surrounding areas as part of Illinois' 11th 
Congressional District.
  Joliet is the third largest city of Illinois, with a storied history 
intertwined with our State. Due to changing of the Congressional maps, 
however, I will no longer be representing Joliet. This great city will 
be represented by my colleague, Congresswoman Lauren Underwood in the 
118th Congress.
  No matter what opinion you have about the redistricting procedures in 
Illinois, and all around the country, for that matter, one thing is 
clear: I was not in the room when these maps were drawn that took 
Joliet away from me.
  While I am sad that my work with the Joliet communities and all of 
the great organizations there is coming to a close, I am so proud to 
reflect upon what we have accomplished for the Joliet community and of 
the tremendous upward arc of progress in Joliet that we have seen over 
the last decade.

  I have so many fond memories of my time representing Joliet. For the 
last decade, Joliet has given me, a scientist, a reason to celebrate 
the work of science fiction with the Joliet Public Library's annual 
Star Wars Day.
  Every June, the community comes together to parade down Ottawa Street 
along with the Imperial Storm Troopers, Jedi Knights, and Ewoks in full 
costume.

[[Page H9650]]

  Aside from giving everyone an excuse to channel their inner child, 
Star Wars Day also promotes literacy, science, technology, engineering, 
and math in a fun and exciting atmosphere that captivates young minds.
  Joliet was also the backdrop for the 1980 classic film, The Blues 
Brothers, which features Joliet Jake and Elwood leaving the Old Joliet 
Prison at the beginning of the movie.
  That is why I was, as Elwood says in the film, ``on a mission from 
God'' to help secure the $3 million for the Old Joliet Prison to repair 
and rehabilitate this cultural and historical landmark for generations 
to enjoy, as well as to benefit what seems to be an endless stream of 
German tourists who stop by the prison, take a selfie in front of it on 
the way down the historic Route 66 corridor that travels through the 
Joliet area.
  And just this past August, the entire community came together to 
watch Dan Aykroyd and Jim Belushi perform at the Old Joliet Prison.
  Joliet has accomplished many things of national significance, as 
well, including being chosen as the site for what will be the largest 
manufacturing plant for electric school buses in North America, and 
which recently started production.
  One of my greatest priorities in Congress was securing funding for 
the Joliet's Brandon Road Lock and Dam, which is currently the last 
line of defense in preventing invasive Asian Carp from reaching Lake 
Michigan and all of the lakes and tributaries of the Great Lakes Basin.
  We worked for many years to fast-track this funding, and thanks to 
the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Army Corps of Engineers finally 
has the resources it needs to begin construction on this project to 
help protect Illinois waterways and every lake and tributary in the 
entire Great Lakes Basin.
  Just this past year, I was proud to secure over $8 million of 
community project funding for various projects in Joliet, including 
$3.5 million to support the work being done to replace aging service 
lines in our plumbing, including lead lines, so that every resident in 
the Joliet area has access to safe drinking water.
  These are just two of the many projects in Joliet that I have had the 
honor of working on throughout the years. What is more important is all 
that Joliet has given the Chicago suburbs.
  The Blues Brothers' concert at the Old Joliet Prison was a fitting 
camp to wrap up my time in Joliet and one that represents one of the 
many reasons why I will miss representing the city in Congress so much.
  Madam Speaker, I take this opportunity to thank everyone in the 
Joliet area for sending me to Congress on your behalf. It has been an 
honor of a lifetime serving you and making your communities a better 
place for future generations.


            Continue Fundamental Research Through Adversity

  Mr. FOSTER. Madam Speaker, I rise to emphasize the importance of 
long-term and reliable funding for scientific projects, especially when 
the going gets tough.
  During my years as a scientist, I was involved in building of giant 
particle accelerators to smash protons and antiprotons together to make 
particles that have not been around since the Big Bang. Back in August 
of 2019, I was honored to speak at the 10th anniversary of the National 
Ignition Facility, which at the time had achieved all of its technical 
goals but was frustrated by scientific uncertainties and was struggling 
with neutron yields on the order of 10 to the 16th.
  The point that I made and the point that I am making today is that it 
is important to continue fundamental research even when the going gets 
tough.

                          ____________________