[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 198 (Friday, December 1, 2023)]
[House]
[Page H6055]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         RECOGNIZING THE INCREDIBLE SERVICE OF JOHN SHINHOLSER

  (Ms. SPANBERGER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. SPANBERGER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 
incredible service of John Shinholser.
  Since 2004, John has served as the president and cofounder of The 
McShin Foundation, a substance use disorder recovery organization that 
provides lifesaving resources to Virginians who are struggling with 
substance use disorder. These services range from medical detox to 
sober living and from providing peer-to-peer mentorship to advocating 
for more support for reentry services in jails and prisons.
  John is a leader in this space, and from the day I first started in 
politics, he wanted to make sure that helping those with substance use 
disorder was a priority of mine.
  Last year, John marked 40 years in recovery himself. He achieved 
sobriety while he was serving in the United States Marine Corps in 
1982, and he never looked back. For decades, he has used his own story 
to empower others, to help them and their families to sustain their 
recoveries.
  He has treated substance use disorder as the illness that it is. With 
his philosophy that substance use disorder is an illness, not a 
character flaw, he and his wife, Carol McDaid, have reached tens of 
thousands of Virginians. They have saved lives and saved families.
  He might be retiring from leading The McShin Foundation, but I know 
that he is far from retired when it comes to making a difference in our 
community.
  On behalf of a grateful Commonwealth and on behalf of every person 
whose life he has impacted, including mine, I stand before the United 
States House of Representatives in thanking John Shinholser for his 
lifelong mission of helping others and our Nation.

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