[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 18]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 24707-24708]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING THE HONORABLE RIC KELLER ON THE OCCASION OF HIS RETIREMENT 
                 FROM THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. JO BONNER

                               of alabama

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 10, 2008

  Mr. BONNER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the distinguished 
career of the Honorable Ric Keller for his service to the people of 
Florida and the U.S. House of Representatives. Congressman Keller has 
represented the Eighth Congressional District of the State of Florida 
for the past eight years.
  Born and raised in Orlando, Florida, Ric graduated first in his class 
at East Tennessee State University and received his law degree from 
Vanderbilt University. Before being elected to the U.S. House of 
Representatives, Ric worked as a private lawyer in Orlando, helping 
write two state constitutional amendments to finance the cleanup of 
Everglades National Park. One, known as ``Polluter Pays,'' required 
sugar companies to contribute to the restoration of the Everglades.
  Raised by a single mother on a secretary's salary, Ric used Pell 
Grants, federal grants for

[[Page 24708]]

low-income college students, to help pay for his college education, and 
since coming to Congress, he has been a leading champion of Pell 
Grants. As a member of the House Education and Labor Committee, as well 
as founder and chairman of the Pell Grant Caucus, Ric was successful in 
pushing to raise the maximum grant from $3,750 to $4,050 a year.
  Ric is also a member of the House Judiciary Committee, from which 
post he has been a leading advocate of the Community Oriented Policing 
Service (COPS) program, which makes law enforcement officers more 
visible by taking them out of patrol cars and putting them on 
neighborhood streets.
  Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing a 
dedicated leader and friend to many in this body. I know his family, 
his wife, Dee Dee; his four children, Nick, Christy, Kaylee and Kate; 
and his many friends and colleagues join me in honoring his 
accomplishments and extending thanks for his service over the years on 
behalf of the State of Florida and the United States of America.
  Ric will surely enjoy the well deserved time he now has to spend with 
his family and loved ones. I wish him the best of luck in all his 
future endeavors.

                          ____________________