[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 20]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 27622-27623]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO DARRELL TALBERT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. KEN CALVERT

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 6, 2005

  Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor Darrell 
Talbert for the leadership and dedication he has displayed while 
serving as mayor of the city of Corona, California. On November 29, 
2005, Darrell's term as mayor came to a close and I want to thank him 
for his commitment and service.
  Darrell has called Corona home for as long as he can remember and he 
continues to demonstrate the extraordinary qualities we expect in our 
community leaders. Shortly after graduation from California State 
University, San Bernardino in 1989, Darrell co-founded Odyssey Group, 
Inc. and Odyssey Publications, Inc. The Odyssey Companies quickly 
became industry leaders in the autograph and memorabilia business.
  Just 5 years out of college and ready to take a more active role 
within the community, Darrell was elected to the Corona City Council in 
1994. During his time on the city council, the city of Corona as well 
as the surrounding region has experienced significant growth. While 
this growth is surely a positive sign, it undoubtedly presents our 
local leaders with a number of challenges. In order to maintain the 
high quality of life residents come to expect, the Corona City Council 
has taken a number of steps to provide residents with the necessary 
infrastructure and services.
  The city of Corona has had a balanced budget in each of the years 
Darrell has served on the city council, and they have done so without 
implementing new taxes. Under his leadership and due to carefully 
managed fiscal budgeting, the city has added over 100 acres of new 
parks, implemented the Downtown Revitalization Project and successfully 
attracted new retails stores, businesses and nationally recognized 
restaurants to serve the citizens of Corona and the surrounding 
communities.
  I know I speak on behalf of our entire community in expressing my 
appreciation for Darrell's tireless efforts on behalf of our city. I 
also want to thank his wife Kimberly and daughter Haley for supporting 
Darrell and at times sacrificing their time with him to allow him to 
perform his civic duties.

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