[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6754]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO MAYOR EDDIE O. REED

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. TOM COLE

                              of oklahoma

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 2, 2006

  Mr. COLE of Oklahoma. Mr. Speaker, I rise to commend Mayor Eddie O. 
Reed, who is retiring as Mayor of Midwest City after many years of 
public service.
  In this country we are fortunate to have public servants of Mayor 
Reed's caliber. All too often we take such individuals for granted. 
Most of the rest of the world is not so lucky, so I take this 
opportunity to praise a man who as Mayor of Midwest City has been an 
excellent public servant who has made life better for his community and 
its people.
  Eddie Reed has been Mayor of Midwest City since 1993. As Mayor, he 
has improved public safety, city streets, and drainage in Midwest City. 
Indeed, building on the work of his father, who also served as Mayor of 
Midwest City, Eddie Reed has transformed his city, making it an engine 
of economic growth in our state. All of his many successes have 
resulted from his skill at building partnerships and bringing people 
together.
  Mr. Speaker, under Mayor Reed's leadership, many quality of life 
improvement projects have been completed. These include the Marion C. 
Reed Baseball Complex, the new Senior Citizens Center opened in 1999, 
and the renovation of the John Conrad Regional Golf Course. Mayor Reed 
has also improved Midwest City's infrastructure including a new water 
tower, a widened Post Road between SE 29th Street and 15th Street, and 
a reconstructed intersection at East Reno and SE 15th Street.
  Perhaps the most important accomplishment of Mayor Reed's, over the 
course of his distinguished career, was his successful role in the BRAC 
process. The importance of his work in protecting Tinker Air Force 
Base, and the impact that has for the economy of Midwest City and for 
all of central Oklahoma, simply cannot be overstated.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to conclude by giving the Mayor the highest 
compliment anyone can ever give a public servant: After 13 years as 
Mayor, Midwest City is in even better shape at the end of his term than 
it was at the beginning. That is the best monument to his achievements. 
I wish him and his wife, Julie, the best in their new life.

                          ____________________