[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 201 (Wednesday, December 6, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1182]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   RECOGNIZING THE JACKSONVILLE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT MILITARY LOUNGE

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                            HON. AARON BEAN

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 6, 2023

  Mr. BEAN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, when I'm traveling to and from my 
home in Florida, it always lifts my heart to see men and women in 
uniform at the airport. We have all seen those incredible videos . . . 
the moment when a deployed service member comes home to the loving 
embrace of a child or a spouse. Mr. Speaker, tell me you don't get 
choked up when you see one of those videos. Our Nation's armed forces 
are full of heroes who go where duty calls, and so, whether headed to 
deployment, or making their way home, you are know they are defending 
our great freedoms.
  That's why today, I stand before you to recognize the new 
Jacksonville International Airport Military Lounge. This is a place 
where service men and women can feel at home, even when they are headed 
for a long road ahead.
  This home away from home for active-duty military includes all the 
amenities of home, and a very special display of the flags of all 
branches of the military, and the POW/MIA flag, to remember those who 
may never come home again.
  This Military Lounge is a reality due to the dedication of the North 
Jacksonville Rotary Club, the Veterans Council of Duval County, the NE 
Florida Green Beret Chapter 88 of the U.S. Army Special Forces 
Association. Several other veterans-civic-governmental organizations 
assisted in recruiting volunteers to staff the lounge.
  Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to honor the Jacksonville 
International Airport on the grand opening of their new Military Lounge 
and thank them for their ongoing efforts to help our veterans, active-
duty military, and their families.

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