[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16949]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 STATEMENT IN MEMORY OF STEVE STREATER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Jones) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. JONES. Madam Speaker, I rise today in memory of Steve Streater, 
who passed away in Asheboro, North Carolina, on June 20, 2009, at the 
age of 50. I extend to all of his friends and family my deepest 
sympathy for their loss.
  Many North Carolina residents will remember Steve as a University of 
North Carolina football hero, who helped lead the team to the 1980 
Atlantic Coast Conference ACC title. What some might not know is that 
Steve was a star player in both baseball and football as a student at 
Sylva-Webster High School.
  As a baseball pitcher, he set North Carolina High School Athletic 
Association baseball records that still stand today--with a reported 12 
shutouts in a season, 23 wins in a season, and 61 career wins. He also 
had eight no-hitters.
  Steve was a good student and like his brothers Eric and Jimmy, he 
went on to play football for a Division I college, the University of 
North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
  At the University of North Carolina, Steve became the only ACC player 
in history to earn all-conference honors at two positions. He was a 
first-team punter and safety for the 1980 Tar Heels football team, the 
last to win an ACC championship.
  During his senior season, he had five interceptions, including three 
in the season closer against Duke University. Steve was also the 
defensive Most Valuable Player of the 1980 Bluebonnet Bowl, with an 
interception that set up the winning touchdown against Texas.
  Sadly, after his triumphant season, Steve's athletic career abruptly 
ended when he was involved in a freak car accident. In April of 1981, 
he was returning home from a tryout with the Washington Redskins. Hours 
after he agreed to sign a free agent contract, his car hit a slick 
spot, slid into an embankment, and was hit by another car. He suffered 
a back jury in that accident and was left paralyzed from the waist down 
for the remainder of his life. I remember that the Washington Redskins 
thought so much of Steve, they still paid his signing bonus after the 
injury.
  Although Steve could no longer impress fans with his skills on the 
field, he made an even greater difference as he served as a role model 
for countless young people. From this tragedy, Steve became an 
inspiration to high school students throughout North Carolina. In 
addition to coaching, he was appointed State field coordinator for 
SADD, Students Against Drunk Driving, which launched in North Carolina 
in 1983. His car accident was not alcohol related, but in this role he 
was not only an inspiration to students, but to people like me.
  While serving in the North Carolina General Assembly, I had the 
privilege and honor of introducing Steve several times when he spoke to 
student groups in my district. I am certain that he benefited from the 
love and support of his family and friends because, despite his 
accident, he never showed the pain of what he had lost.
  Steve touched many of us young and old in such a positive way that 
his life will never be forgotten by those of us who had the privilege 
to know him. Steve Streater was an outstanding individual and he will 
be dearly missed.

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