[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 11]
[House]
[Pages 14825-14826]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              CAPTAIN GEORGE A. WOOD POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. MARCHANT. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 4962) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 100 Pitcher Street in Utica, New York, as the 
``Captain George A. Wood Post Office Building''.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 4962

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. CAPTAIN GEORGE A. WOOD POST OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 100 Pitcher Street in Utica, New York, 
     shall be known and designated as the ``Captain George A. Wood 
     Post Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Captain George A. Wood Post Office 
     Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Marchant) and the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.


                             General Leave

  Mr. MARCHANT. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. MARCHANT. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Captain George A. Wood of New York was killed on November 20, 2003, 
while fighting the war on terror in Iraq. Wood was on patrol when his 
tank rolled over an improvised explosive device. At the time, he was 
assigned to B Company, 1st Battalion, 67th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 
4th Infantry Division, based out of Fort Hood, Texas.
  Growing up in New York's Mohawk Valley, Wood was a football and track 
star at Notre Dame Junior Senior High School in Utica, New York. He 
later went on to earn his degree from Cornell and completed his 
postgraduate work at both New York State University Colleges at Albany 
and Cortland. His lifelong dream was to teach history and coach 
football at West Point.
  Captain Wood leaves behind his wife and daughter and many lifelong 
friends. His friends will always reminisce about his wonderful 
storytelling ability and his goodheartedness that was transparent in 
everything that he did.
  I would urge all the Members to come together to honor Captain George 
Wood by passing H.R. 4962.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CLAY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume.
  As a member of the Government Reform Committee, I am pleased to join 
my colleague Representative Marchant in support of H.R. 4962, 
legislation sponsored by Representative Boehlert which names a post 
office in Utica, New York, after Captain George A. Wood. H.R. 4962, 
which was cosponsored by the entire New York delegation, was 
unanimously approved by the Government Reform Committee on June 29, 
2006.
  George A. Wood, a native New Yorker, was by all accounts a stellar 
person. A graduate of Notre Dame Junior Senior High School in Utica, 
George was a high school track and football star. After high school, he 
graduated from Cornell University and went on to earn master's degrees 
from New York State University Colleges at Albany and Cortland.
  A history buff who was fascinated with military history, George 
joined the military and was assigned to B company, 1st Battalion, 67th 
Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade, 4th Infantry Division based in Fort Hood, 
Texas.
  Sadly, at age 33, Captain Wood was killed while on patrol in Baqubah, 
Iraq, on November 20, 2003, when his tank rolled over an improvised 
explosive device. Captain Wood is survived by his wife Lisa and 
daughter Maria.
  Mr. Speaker, it is always difficult to learn of a soldier's death, 
but I commend my colleague for seeking to honor the legacy, sacrifice 
and accomplishments of Captain Wood by designating the Utica post 
office in his name. I note that Captain Wood's father and grandfather 
were postal employees at the Utica facility. How fitting.
  Madam Speaker, I urge the swift passage of this bill.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MARCHANT. Madam Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume 
to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Boehlert).
  Mr. BOEHLERT. Madam Speaker, today we have the privilege of honoring 
our fallen hero, U.S. Army Captain George A. Wood. The bill before us 
would rename the Pitcher Street Post Office in Utica, New York, the 
George A. Wood Post Office Building, which is a fitting tribute to a 
man who paid the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedom and our 
security.
  Captain Wood bravely served our Nation in Iraq where he met an 
untimely death on November 20, 2003. However, his memory will live on. 
Every day, Captain Wood will be in the hearts of his family and his 
friends and his classmates and his comrades and our neighbors by virtue 
of the naming of this public facility, this Federal facility in his 
honor.
  He is survived by his wife Lisa and his 6-year-old daughter Maria, 
and to them we send the Nation's condolences on your great loss of 
yesteryear and our optimism on a more promising future because of what 
the Captain Woods do so often for so many.

[[Page 14826]]

  Captain Wood was born and raised in upstate New York's beautiful 
Mohawk Valley. He was an accomplished athlete at Notre Dame Junior 
Senior High School, and if you are from our neck of the woods, you know 
those teams are just dynamite. He excelled at both football and track 
and field.
  He was also, and this is very important, a superstar in the 
classroom. He graduated not just from Cornell University but later 
earned master's degrees from both the State University at New York in 
Albany and State University at New York in Cortland.
  In the Armed Services, Captain Wood served for 8 years in the 4th 
Infantry Division in Fort Hood, Texas, and there he became fascinated 
with the history of our great military. As a matter of fact, Captain 
Wood dreamed of teaching history and coaching football at the West 
Point Military Academy. Had he not paid the ultimate price for our way 
of life, I am confident that he would have seen this dream become a 
reality.
  Captain Wood's discipline, his love of learning and his fine 
character have made him a model citizen for all of his countrymen and 
generations to come, a true role model, a genuine American hero.
  Both Captain Wood's father and his granddad worked at the Pitcher 
Street Post Office, so there is a special affinity for the post office 
in the Wood family, and it would be our utmost pleasure and distinct 
honor to designate the facility at Utica, New York, as the Captain 
George A. Wood Post Office Building in honor of a true American hero.
  I want to thank my colleagues in the majority and the minority and on 
the committee for dealing with this very important issue. Oftentimes, 
as we deal with the major issues that affect so many people around the 
world, we sometimes neglect the littler things, but they are equally 
important. They are very personal. They have real meaning for so many, 
and I thank my colleagues for their support and their cooperation. I 
urge all of my colleagues to proudly vote ``aye'' for this measure.
  Mr. CLAY. Madam Speaker, I urge the swift passage of this bill. I 
have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. MARCHANT. Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to support the 
passage of H.R. 4962, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Marchant) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 4962.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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