[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 21]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 29838-29839]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     HONORING CARL AND MIKE LOWELL

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 18, 2003

  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor two 
of South Florida's outstanding citizens, Carl Lowell and his son, Mike 
Lowell.
  Carl Lowell pitched for St. Joseph's University in 1968 and '69 
before leaving after his junior year to go to dental school in Puerto 
Rico. He was named Most Valuable Player of the 1968 team and was an 
honorable mention on the All-Middle-Atlantic Conference team after 
going 6-3 with a 2.39 earned run average while striking out 65 batters 
in 78 2/3 innings. On March 29, 1969, he pitched a no-hitter against 
Franklin & Marshall, one of just five no-hitters in school history. His 
career 3.31 ERA is the fourth-lowest in the school's record books.
  Carl, pitching for the Puerto Rican national team, beat Cuba in 
international competition. Carl is of Cuban and German descent and is a 
strong believer in freedom and democracy. When Cuban dictator Fidel 
Castro wanted to meet the team and have his photo taken with the 
players, Carl stayed on the bus instead.
  Today, Carl is a prominent and respected dentist in South Florida.
  His son, Mike, is the third baseman for the 2003 World Series 
Champion Florida Marlins and is one of baseball's best hitters. This 
year he hit 32 homers with 105 runs-batted-in despite missing the last 
month of the season with a broken hand. He's a 2002 and 2003 All Star 
and recently won the 2003 National League Silver Slugger Award which is 
given to the top offensive players at each position, as voted on by 
major league baseball managers and coaches.
  Mike grew up in Miami where he was a high school baseball star and 
became the heart of the best Coral Gables High team in decades. He made 
All Dade First Team and was an All State/All Star in 1992.
  Mike was offered a full scholarship by Florida International 
University (FIU) where he excelled and was an Academic All-American.
  In 1995, he was drafted by the New York Yankees and quickly moved up 
the minor league system. His parents had always stressed the importance 
of a good education, and after being drafted, with some special help 
from his mother, Beatriz, Mike returned to FlU. Mike had three grade-
by-final-exam courses, and Beatriz went to class and took notes for him 
while he was in the instructional league. He graduated Magna Cum Laude 
in 1996 with a degree in Finance.
  In 1999, he was traded back home to play for the Florida Marlins. 
However, less than three weeks later, Mike's plans were put on hold by 
a startling discovery. While undergoing a regular physical examination, 
Mike was diagnosed with testicular cancer. The surgery and three weeks 
of radiation were successful, and today he is cancer-free.
  On July 20, 2002, Carl had prostate cancer surgery. Mike spent the 
whole day at the hospital with him, then hit a game-winning home

[[Page 29839]]

run against the Expos that night. After the game, he said he had 
dedicated the home run to his father.
  Mike created the Mike Lowell Foundation which hosts the Mike Lowell 
Foundation Charity Golf Classic. All the proceeds from the event are 
donated to a wonderful charity in South Florida which provides free 
medical care to low income cancer patients, ``La Liga Contra el 
Cancer'' (The League Against Cancer) and local sports programs.
  A patriot like his father, on April 25, 2000, Mike sat out the game 
to protest the shameful raid on the home of Elian Gonzalez, further 
earning the respect and admiration of freedom loving people everywhere.
  Mr. Speaker, South Florida is truly fortunate to have these 
distinguished individuals living in our community. They are fine 
examples of love, perseverance, patriotism and civic leadership.

                          ____________________