[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 16623-16624]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   WEST VIRGINIA, WILD AND WONDERFUL

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, today is West Virginia's birthday. 
Established on June 20, 1863, West Virginia became the 35th star in our 
national constellation, taking her place between Kansas, which joined 
the Union on January 29, 1861, and Nevada, which joined on October 31, 
1864. I am pleased to offer West Virginia happy birthday wishes and to 
take the opportunity to share a bit about my State with the rest of the 
country.
  I urge anyone who has not visited West Virginia to do so, to see and 
experience for themselves the great natural beauty, the friendly 
people, the exquisite art, recreation, and cultural sites and events 
that fill our mountain home.
  As a State, West Virginia is a youthful 144 years old. As a unique 
piece of geography, West Virginia is, of course, much older. The 
Appalachian Mountains that define West Virginia's geography today are 
but the worn remains of a once-high alpine plateau similar to Tibet, 
rising some 10,000 to 18,000 feet high, flanked on the south and on the 
east by the Allegheny Mountain Range, which may have once exceeded 
today's Himalaya Mountains in height.
  Of course, that was a long time ago, perhaps 250 million years ago, 
when the great wedge of coastal sediments deposited during the earlier 
Devonian and Carboniferous periods were thrust up toward the heavens.
  Today, a bit of that alpine experience can be found in Tucker County 
and in Randolph County, in an area known as Dolly Sods. Filled with 
upland bogs, beaver ponds, and flat rocky plains, Dolly Sods is a bit 
of northern Canada transplanted into West Virginia, complete with 
beautiful fall color and harsh winter weather.
  The rock that forms West Virginia's mountains, that is seamed with 
the State's famous coal deposits, was laid down some 320 to 286 million 
years ago, when West Virginia was part of a vast complex of coastal 
swamplands. In this endless tropical forest of primitive ferns and 
towering, primitive trees formed layer after layer of peat, compressed 
into coal seams that average 3 feet thick but which can reach 25 feet 
in thickness.
  When one learns that 12 inches of coal requires approximately 10,000 
years of continuous peat accumulation to form, one sees a very 
different picture of West Virginia. The reminders of this different 
world can still be found in the coal, in the form of lacy, ferny fossil 
leaves and stems, the last farewell of a lost world.
  In other rock layers, there is evidence of West Virginia's earlier 
days as well, in the sea creatures forever preserved and now exposed 
far inland and at elevations well above the sea level that they knew in 
life.
  In the New River Gorge, visitors have the opportunity to view rock 
sequences from those early years, 320 to 330 million years ago. 
Visitors can also see a more recent phenomenon in the form of the New 
River Gorge Bridge, the longest single-arch steel bridge in the world, 
rising some 876 feet above the water below. Beautiful natural stone 
works of art may also be seen in the Smoke Hole area and Seneca Rocks 
in Grant and Pendleton Counties and in many other locations around the 
State.
  West Virginia's natural beauty, as well as its wonderful outdoor 
activities, can be found in each of West Virginia's 55 counties. From 
hot air ballooning or soaring to spelunking, from rock climbing to 
kayaking, hiking, horseback riding, or off-roading, one can be as 
energetic as one likes. You can also fish, ride a tube down a river, 
sit around a campfire, or sip lemonade in a rocking chair while you 
rest and recharge.
  West Virginia is not simply for nature lovers, however. The State is 
full of festivals that celebrate virtually every foodstuff, musical 
form, and artistic discipline known to mankind. Musical events that 
range from bluegrass music to symphonies to garage bands, and shopping 
and sightseeing to please all tastes and interests.
  West Virginia is famous, famous for her quilts, pottery, and handmade 
crafts, but there is also plenty of modern work alongside the homespun 
favorites.
  From rustic campsites to the luxury of the Greenbrier, West Virginia 
has something for everybody, something for everyone. It could easily 
take a lifetime to experience everything there is to see and to do. By 
then, of course, time and nature will have changed a few more things 
and created new things to see and do.
  So as West Virginia celebrates, I hope that you may be inspired to 
pay a visit. I hope all Senators may be inspired to pay a visit. You 
``ain't'' seen nothing yet like it. The daylilies are blooming in great 
orange rafts of blossoms above the waves of green leaves, welcoming the 
day. Butterflies and songbirds delight the eye with color like the 
ribbons on a birthday present. Cool breezes are blowing, the mocking 
bird is singing, rivers are tumbling between the mountains, singing 
birthday songs. And tonight the stars will dance for you as West 
Virginia celebrates.
  I close with a poem about West Virginia, by West Virginian Louise 
McNeill, from her book titled, ``Hill Daughter: New and Selected 
Poems.'' Louise McNeill was born in 1911 in Pocahontas County and 
became West Virginia's Poet Laureate in 1979.

                             West Virginia

       Where the mountain river flows
       And the rhododendron grows
       Is the land of all the lands
       That I touch with tender hands;

       Loved and treasured, earth and star,
       By my father's father far--
       Deep-earth, black-earth, of-the-lime
       From the ancient oceans' time.

       Plow-land, fern-land, woodland, shade,
       Grave-land where my kin are laid,
       West Virginia's hills to bless--
       Leafy songs of wilderness;

       Dear land, near land, here at home--
       Where the rocks are honeycomb,
       And the rhododendrons . . .
       Where the mountain river runs.


                      HONORING CHARLESTON'S HEROES

  Mr. DeMINT. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about some real 
heroes and their real sacrifices this week. Late Monday, a horrible 
blaze in Charleston, SC, claimed the lives of nine local firefighters. 
Details are still being investigated, but what we know now is these 
heroes died trying to save lives. We fear most were caught under a 
collapsed roof in the quick-spreading flames.
  My heart goes out to the families, friends, and coworkers of these 
firefighters. These were courageous public servants. We will miss them 
dearly. They paid the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. In the 
aftermath, our State's low country must deal with the shock and sorrow 
of these losses. Our job as citizens is to never forget what they did 
and to try to turn the shock and sorrow into solemn remembrance and a 
commitment to help their families.
  I also want to mention two other Charleston leaders who are 
struggling with this situation on the ground: Fire Chief Rusty Thomas, 
and city of Charleston Mayor Joe Riley. According to news reports, 
Chief Thomas stayed up Monday night meeting with many of the families 
of the victims. He was on the scene all night.
  The police chief, Greg Mullen, said:

  Chief Thomas is a true leader.

  I could not agree more. Mayor Riley is no stranger when it comes to 
dealing with disaster. His leadership during the trying aftermath of 
Hurricane Hugo was instrumental in our quick recovery. His leadership 
will greatly aid the Charleston Fire Department now as they attempt to 
move forward.
  Firefighters represent the best our country has to offer. I will 
never forget these hometown heroes and the tremendous sacrifice they 
made this week. For the families of those who lost loved ones in 
Charleston, our words are feeble comfort for them, but we will always 
honor the memory and sacrifice of these heroic public servants of South 
Carolina.


[[Page 16624]]

       For the families and friends of firefighters who remain on 
     the job today, we pray for them as the Psalmist did, that God 
     would be their ``refuge and strength, a very present help in 
     time of trouble.''

  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, today is a special day: one which is 
special to me and the nearly 2 million residents of the State of West 
Virginia. On this day in 1863 West Virginia entered the Union as the 
35th State.
  West Virginia is America. West Virginia is a place where people are 
proud of who they are and not what they have. It is a place where 
neighbor helping neighbor means something. Where community, faith, and 
family are not taken for granted.
  The area now known as West Virginia was originally settled thousands 
of years ago by Native Americans. The 17th and 18th centuries saw the 
first pioneering European settlers who came across the Appalachians 
looking for an expansive new homestead. The 19th century saw America's 
darkest hour in the Civil War. But, it was in this conflict that 
Western Virginia separated from Virginia, standing on its own, faithful 
to the Union, and earning statehood. From that day to today, West 
Virginia has been an important part of America.
  Our coal powers America. Our steel built America's cities from the 
ground up. Our timber built America's homes. Our chemical industry has 
improved the quality of life for all Americans. And yet today, it is 
another resource, West Virginia's most precious one, this is driving a 
new generation of West Virginians. West Virginia is home to some of the 
most pristine natural beauty in our Nation. Visitors from around the 
country--around the world--come to take in the majestic mountain 
vistas, explore our forests, celebrate our Appalachian heritage, fish, 
ski, and hit the links, and most importantly spread time with our 
people.
  So, just who are these people? They have stout hearts, courage, and 
an unfaltering determination. These qualities are particularly evident 
in West Virginia veterans like Chester Merriman, the youngest person to 
serve in World War I at just 14 years of age, or Hershel ``Woody'' 
Williams, who received a Congressional Medal of Honor in World War II 
for his heroism during the Battle for Iwo Jima, epitomize how West 
Virginians have proudly served their country no matter when--from the 
Civil War to today's conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. Today, there 
are more than 200,000 veterans living in the State giving West Virginia 
the highest per capita of any State in the country.
  I could go on and on and say the same thing about West Virginia's 
coal miners, steel workers, loggers, and chemical plant workers all of 
whom are truly the hardest working, finest people you ever spend time 
with. I know because I have.
  West Virginia is my home and I am proud of that. I feel genuinely 
blessed to have been able to serve the people of West Virginia for as 
long as I have. West Virginia Day has always been a day resonating 
deeply inside of me and my fellow West Virginians. Happy 144th Birthday 
West Virginia! I ask that you, my distinguished colleagues join us in 
our celebration.

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