[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 16263]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




        TRIBUTE TO MR. AND MRS. GENE SAPP OF HUNTSVILLE, ALABAMA

                                 ______
                                 

                    HON. ROBERT E. (BUD) CRAMER, JR.

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 5, 2002

  Mr. CRAMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize two very special 
members of the North Alabama community, Mr. and Mrs. Gene Sapp. Gene 
and Pat Sapp are the deserving recipients of the 2002 Huntsville 
Arthritis Foundation's Humanitarian Award. The people of North Alabama 
are very fortunate to have had Gene and Pat Sapp active in our 
community over the last forty years. They have provided leadership to 
North Alabama in business, education, economic development, 
volunteerism, music and music education, and overall humanitarianism.
  Gene Sapp presently serves as Co-Chairman of Sanmina-SCI, a major 
employer in North Alabama. Prior to the merger between Sanmina and SCI, 
Inc., Gene led SCI as President, CEO and then as Chairman. During his 
tenure as President, he led the company from annual revenues of $59 
million to a run rate approaching $10 billion. Although he plans to 
retire as Co-Chairman of Sanmina-SCI in December, he will remain a 
director and continue to be a leader in the Huntsville community. Gene 
is very active with educational issues, serving as a member of the 
University of Alabama in Huntsville's Foundation Board of Trustees and 
its Business Advisory Council as well as founding Sci-Quest in 
Huntsville, an operational hands-on science center for all ages. Mr. 
Sapp is director of the Huntsville Symphony Orchestra Foundation, a 
founding trustee of Leadership Alabama, a founding director of Junior 
Achievement, and a member of Huntsville's Committee of 100. His awards 
include the Silver and Gold Knights of Management awards from the 
National Management Association and Huntsville Rotary Club's 2000 
Vocational Excellence Award.
  Pat Sapp is a very active and important member of our community. She 
was one of the first women to be ordained as a deacon at Weatherly 
Heights Baptist Church and was the first woman to serve as chairperson 
of the church's council of deacons. Pat was instrumental in forming a 
satellite center for senior citizens in an area of Huntsville that did 
not have adequate outreach available to our community's elderly. She 
serves on the Huntsville Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees and has 
spent many years as a nursing home volunteer, helping establish the 
``Adopt Grandparents'' program for 6 to 12 year-old children. She has 
organized various multinational receptions and hosted several 
international military personnel assigned to Redstone Arsenal, helping 
make Huntsville a welcoming community for our visitors. Additionally, 
Pat was a chief volunteer and contributor for the Downtown Rescue 
Mission's Capital Campaign Committee that developed a new women's and 
children's shelter, the Sapp Shelter for Women and Children.
  Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the people of North Alabama, I rise today 
to recognize and congratulate Mr. and Mrs. Gene Sapp for receiving the 
2002 Humanitarian Award from the Huntsville Chapter of the Arthritis 
Foundation. As you can tell. this distinguished award recognizing them 
for their outstanding commitment to our community is well-deserved, I 
join their children, Sharon Crain and Dr. Mark Sapp; their 
grandchildren, Will, Berkley, and Annie; and the people of North 
Alabama in thanking Gene and Pat Sapp for their contributions of time, 
talents, and compassion to our community over the years.

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