[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 17]
[Senate]
[Page 25156]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



      TRIBUTE TO SERGEANT MAJOR GORDON R. TAFT, UNITED STATES ARMY

 Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to 
Sergeant Major Gordon R. ``Randy'' Taft, United States Army, a native 
of Decatur, Alabama, who is retiring this month from active duty after 
twenty-six years of distinguished service to the country. Sergeant 
Major Taft, who currently serves as the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the 
Director of the Defense Logistics Agency in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, has 
devoted his professional life to supporting the personal, 
administrative, and logistics needs of military men and women assigned 
around the world in defense of our freedom. His accomplishments are 
many and his reputation for leading and developing young soldiers is 
legendary. Randy Taft's selfless contributions to the National Defense 
will be missed, so as he transitions to new opportunities, I want to 
say thanks to him on behalf of a grateful Nation.
  Sergeant Major Taft's numerous military awards and decorations 
reflect the tremendous impact he has had on the lives of America's 
fighting men and women. His decorations include the Legion of Merit, 
the Meritorious Service Medal, the Army Commendation Medal, and the 
Humanitarian Service Medal. But the medals and certificates do not say 
it all. Like all Sergeants Major in their day-to-day activities and 
accomplishments, Randy Taft has served as a positive role model for a 
whole generation of the Army's finest soldiers. Whether he was serving 
as a personnel specialist, a platoon sergeant, a recruiter, a member of 
the Army's premier Honor Guard, or as the Senior Enlisted Advisor for 
the 44,000 person Defense Logistics Agency, he has led by example. His 
greatest accomplishments are the young soldiers he has helped mold into 
the kind of citizens this country can be proud to call our Army.
  Mr. President, I am proud and honored to congratulate Sergeant Major 
Randy Taft upon the occasion of his retirement from the United States 
Army.

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