[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 21911]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  TRIBUTE TO JAMES AND CAROL McDOWELL

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. LYNN C. WOOLSEY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 13, 2006

  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my constituents James 
and Carol McDowell on the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary, 
October 27, 2006.
  Jim and Carol were high school sweethearts in Petaluma, CA, where 
they met when Jim was a senior and Carol was a sophomore. Recently, the 
couple's 17-year-old granddaughter learned that they had been married 
when Carol was right out of high school and exclaimed, ``Gram, you got 
married at 18! How could you?''
  Jim was the third generation to operate the family dairy ranch just 
outside of town. His son Michael, ``Mike,'' now runs the operation as 
an organic farm, adding strawberries and tomatoes to the dairy 
operation. Mike and his wife Linda have two children, Ryan and Shannon.
  Patrick, ``Pat,'' the couple's other son, is Asian editor for the 
Associated Press, covering 34 Asian countries. He and his wife Solzck 
live in Bangkok, Thailand.
  Mr. Speaker, 50 years together is a wonderful testament to Jim and 
Carol's love and commitment. Jim summed up what makes it work when he 
told me, ``Carol has always been special.'' Congratulations to them on 
this happy occasion.

                          ____________________