[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 199 (Monday, December 4, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1159]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]





      HONORING CHRISTINA ANDERSON SMITH'S SERVICE TO THE HOUSE OF 
                            REPRESENTATIVES

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, December 4, 2023

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor 
Christina Anderson Smith's service to the U.S. House of 
Representatives.
  For more than 22 years, Tina has been one of the House's elite court 
reporters providing expert stenographic support to committees and the 
House floor. She is among the first African-American official reporters 
for the House; and from her seat in the well of the House, she has had 
a front-row seat to history while producing the daily Congressional 
Record.
  Tina was born in Wilmington, North Carolina. Her father was one of 
the Veterans Affairs Department's first African-American hospital 
administrators--a position that required frequent relocation--and she 
grew up in North Carolina, Virginia, Illinois, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, 
Texas, and Michigan.
  After completing a bachelor's degree at Oakwood University in 
Huntsville, Alabama, and a court reporting certificate from Southern 
Business College in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Tina began her court 
reporting career in 1986, often working with public defenders at the 
Broward County jail.
  Over the next decade, Tina expanded the scope of her work to include 
criminal and civil court divisions, and she became proficient in 
deposition work with a heavy focus on personal injury and medical 
malpractice cases.
  In 1999, she moved from Florida to Maryland to work as an official 
reporter with the Prince George's County Courts in Upper Marlboro, a 
position she held until she came to the House in June 2001.
  While her career has taken her from the jailhouse to the People's 
House, Tina's service to the Nation extends beyond the U.S. Capitol.
  She served in the U.S. Navy Reserve from 1996 until she was honorably 
discharged in 2004. In the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, she was 
mobilized in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, working for the 
Deputy Chief of Naval Operations at the Pentagon and Washington Navy 
Yard.
  Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the whole House, I wish to express my 
thanks for Tina's trailblazing and dedicated service to her country. 
While I will miss our chats during votes, I know Tina and her family 
look forward to this next chapter, and I wish her all the best.

                          ____________________