[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 181 (Friday, December 6, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1235-E1236]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONOR OF SERVING THE THIRD DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY IN THE U.S. HOUSE OF 
                            REPRESENTATIVES

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. ANDY KIM

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, December 6, 2024

  Mr. KIM of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise today one final time in 
this sacred chamber to thank my neighbors in the Third District of New 
Jersey for the honor of getting to represent them in Congress over 
these past six years.
  It is an honor that I never thought I would have. This was the 
district my parents chose to create a life and build a family. This was 
the district that raised me. I went to public schools in the same area 
I represent now. I played little league on the same fields I drive by 
heading to meet constituents. It's these places--and these people--that 
shaped me. I am forever grateful for that.
  As I grew up, I watched my parents--my mother, a nurse, and my 
father, a medical researcher working to find cures for cancer and 
Alzheimer's--work to give back to the community that gave us 
everything. They had a saying that service isn't just a job, it's a way 
of life. And so, it was for my community and for my parents that I 
served.
  If service is a way of life, then it's important that you start by 
understanding the people you serve. To do that, I held at least one 
town hall every month I served--81 in total--to hear directly from the 
people I represent. Sometimes, those people didn't agree with me. 
Oftentimes, I came away learning something new. Every time, I walked 
away with a renewed dedication to working for them--no matter who they 
supported or how they labeled themselves.
  From town halls to small business walks to tours of organizations 
just trying to help, I carry with me still a million conversations that 
inspired me. Whether it was the Superstorm Sandy survivors who just 
wanted a fair process in rebuilding, volunteers at food pantries who 
just wanted to make sure that their neighbors didn't go without a good 
meal, or those military families who were looking for ways to give back 
after their service was over, I want to say thank you for every 
constituent who helped give me purpose.
  It was that purpose that drove my actions. Last month, I helped to 
cut the ribbon on a brand new VA health clinic in Ocean County--one of 
my first major priorities and a reminder that there should be no 
mountain too big to move to help our veterans. As a member of the House 
Armed Services Committee, I was proud to deliver wins for our 
servicemembers, their families, and my own community. From pay raises 
to better health care to improved childcare, I would like to thank 
every person who served and for the honor of getting to work for you as 
a member of the House. And it was the purpose I derived from those 
conversations that helped me start to lay the groundwork for building a 
brighter future for our state. From delivering on infrastructure and 
passing bills like the CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation 
Reduction Act to make investments in the jobs of the future, we can 
better prepare New Jersey to lead in the rest of the 21st century.
  If there is one thing I am most proud of during my six years 
representing my community in the House, it is the seemingly small acts 
that made a massive difference to our constituents. The thousands of 
casework cases closed and tens of millions of dollars returned back to 
our community showed that public service can make an impact. It doesn't 
matter if it was a passport expedited so a grandparent could see their 
new grandchild or critical Medicare or VA benefits secured so someone 
could put food on the table and pay rent, this work mattered and was 
our way of giving back.
  No member of Congress does this alone. While our names are on the 
doors, it's the people behind the doors that work every day to serve 
and make our communities better. I want to thank each and every one of 
them for their hard work--often under very difficult conditions--to 
give back. Every win that I have been lucky enough to achieve is theirs 
too. As a thank you, I would like to submit their names for the record 
so that they can be properly recognized for the imprint they've made on 
this district.
  My current team: Elizabeth Antonowicz, Marshall Burkhardt, Thomas 
Carnes, Amanda Carte, Anna Connole, Anthony DeAngelo, Kristen Foca, Ben 
Giovine, Danielle Giulino, Gabriela Hartney, Julianna Heck, Jason 
Ingle, Catherine Melman-Kenny, Hafiza Kazi, Amy Oliver, Amy Pfeiffer, 
Nikitha Rai, Forrest Rilling, Jerome Townsend, Lynette Whiteman.
  Previous staff: Riham Amin, Sharon Anderson, Hillary Caron, Anna 
Conn, Gianna Djuric, Sophie Friedfeld-Gebaide, Sean Gregory, Sarah 
Izaak, Benjamin Kamens, Matthew Knowlton, Yujin Lee, Benjamin Olarsch, 
Susan Pansius, Antoinette Miles, Nathan Riggins, Cecily Scott Martin, 
Thomas Smith, Tyrus Stokes-Ballard, Virginia Walkey, Maura Weaver.
  As I look ahead at my new role getting to serve my state, I do so 
with excitement and humility. I look forward to get to serve my 
community again--this time in the United States Senate--but always 
remembering the work done, the conversations had, and words that will 
forever echo from my parents, that service isn't a job, it's truly a 
way of life.

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