[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 130 (Friday, August 7, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4559-S4560]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             TRIBUTE TO LIEUTENANT COLONEL MARK L. HAALAND

 Mr. KAINE. Madam President, I would like to take this 
opportunity to recognize an exemplary Virginian and outstanding 
citizen, LTC Mark L. Haaland, U.S. Army, Retired. Lieutenant Colonel 
Haaland is retiring from his position as director of government affairs 
for the Association of the United States Army, AUSA, where he has been 
a leading advocate and voice for the total Army--Regular Army, Army 
National Guard, U.S. Army Reserve, Army civilians, Army families, and 
veterans--for nearly 8 years. He exemplifies a lifetime of commitment 
and service to our Nation, his community, the Commonwealth of Virginia, 
and his family.
  As the son of an Army officer and Vietnam war veteran, Lieutenant 
Colonel Haaland knew from a young age that his life's path would be one 
of service. After his family moved to Hampton, VA, in 1972, when his 
father was assigned to the Army Training and Doctrine Command, Mark 
attended Kecoughtan High School, where he met his future wife Toni 
Minetti. Following his graduation in 1975, he attended the U.S. 
Military Academy at West Point, graduating with the Class of 1979 
before beginning a 20-year Army career as an armor officer serving in 
operational units and on the Army staff at the Pentagon.
  Virginia has remained central to Lieutenant Colonel Haaland's life 
and service. He and Toni, a Hampton native whose father Pat Minetti 
devoted his own career to public service as a Hampton police officer 
before retiring as the city's chief of police, were married at Fort 
Monroe in 1979. During Lieutenant Colonel Haaland's Army service, the 
family returned to Hampton, while he served at the Army Training and 
Doctrine Command. Since his assignment to Headquarters, Department of 
the Army in 1993, Mark and Toni have made Fairfax County their home for 
more than three decades. Both of their children were born in Virginia, 
attended Virginia public schools, and graduated from Virginia 
universities.
  After retiring from Active Duty, Lieutenant Colonel Haaland continued 
to dedicate his career to strengthening our national security. Whether 
serving on Capitol Hill, in the private sector, or in the nonprofit 
community, he has earned a reputation for steady leadership, a positive 
outlook, kindness, and professionalism. These qualities have been a 
source of strength for the many people he has led, mentored, and taught 
throughout his career.
  At AUSA, headquartered in Arlington, VA, Lieutenant Colonel Haaland 
led the development and implementation of the association's outreach 
and advocacy strategy to advance AUSA's priorities before Congress and 
the executive branch. AUSA's government affairs mission is to educate, 
inform, and connect in support of the total Army through consistent, 
principled, and effective advocacy. Lieutenant Colonel Haaland has 
excelled in every aspect of that mission and has often remarked that it 
has been one of the greatest honors of his career to advocate for 
soldiers, Army civilians, veterans, retirees, and military families. He 
will be missed by all who have had the privilege to work with him.
  Lieutenant Colonel Haaland's commitment to service extends well 
beyond his professional career. He and Toni are active parishioners at 
Saint Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church in Fairfax, where Mark ministers 
to homebound seniors and volunteers to help provide meals for those 
experiencing food insecurity. He also remains deeply engaged in 
Virginia's military and veterans community through the American Legion 
and the Military Officers Association of America.
  Lieutenant Colonel Haaland has served the Nation he loves with 
distinction and has been an exemplary leader for soldiers, his 
coworkers, and his community. On behalf of the U.S. Senate, we thank 
LTC Mark L. Haaland, his wife Toni, and their entire

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family for their decades of commitment, sacrifice, and service to our 
Nation and to the Commonwealth of Virginia. We join our colleagues in 
wishing him a long, healthy, and joyful retirement.

                          ____________________