[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 24329-24330]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




        IN HONOR OF VA MEDICAL HOSPITAL OF WILMINGTON, DELAWARE

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MICHAEL N. CASTLE

                              of delaware

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 14, 2007

  Mr. CASTLE. Madam Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I rise 
today to recognize the VA Medical Hospital of Wilmington, DE as a 2007 
recipient of the Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award. 
This award is given to those employers who have gone above and beyond 
in their support for their employees who are members of the National 
Guard and Reserve. The VA Medical Hospital has earned this honor 
through its unflagging support for our Nation's troops and its 
commitment to our Nation's security.

[[Page 24330]]

  The Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award is the United 
States' government's highest recognition for those employers who 
support their employees in the National Guard and Reserve. Candidates 
are judged on several categories, including their pay policies, 
benefits and leave policies, and supervisor training.
  In order to be honored with this prestigious award, an employer must 
be nominated by an employee who is a member of the National Guard or 
Reserve. This nomination process reflects how highly regarded the VA 
Medical Hospital is by its many employees. Wilmington's VA Medical 
Center is a teaching hospital that provides veterans with health care 
options, readjustment counseling, as well as a nursing home care unit. 
With its high end technology and 60-bed, well-organized facility, the 
VA Medical hospital provides care for veterans on multiple levels.
  I join Delawareans in thanking the Wilmington VA Medical Hospital for 
its continued support of its employees who serve in the National Guard 
and Reserve. I commend the hospital for 61 years of practice and thank 
them for their tireless dedication to the veterans, as well as to the 
United States of America.

                          ____________________