[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 17]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 23457-23458]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      AIDING AMERICAN SAMOA IN QUAKE AND TSUNAMI RECOVERY EFFORTS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. DONNA M. CHRISTENSEN

                         of the virgin islands

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 30, 2009

  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Madam Speaker, I once again today rise to extend my 
thought and prayers to the victims of the 8.0 magnitude earthquake and 
the subsequent tsunami that devastated our brothers and sisters in the 
U.S. territory in the South Pacific, American Samoa and Western Samoa.
  And my heart and that of all Virgin Islanders go out with sympathy to 
those that have lost loved ones as a result of yesterday's tragedy.
  As the Congresswoman from the U.S. Virgin Islands, a community of 
islands that are also vulnerable to tropical disasters, and former 
chair of the Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, I am well aware of the 
toll that it can take on people, on infrastructure, on our time and 
resources but most especially--individuals and

[[Page 23458]]

families. And the emotional repercussions go on long after the physical 
recovery is done.
  Having visited American Samoa on several occasions and Western Samoa 
once, I know of the many struggles especially faced by the people of 
American Samoa, but I also know of their close family and community 
ties, their strength of spirit and most importantly, their faith.
  The people of my district, the U.S. Virgin Islands and I stand in 
solidarity with the people of American Samoa at this time of their 
great distress.
  I extend my support of our colleagues and friend--the Dean of the 
territorial delegation--Congressman Eni Faleomavaega as we make the 
necessary arrangements to mobilize and deploy the urgently needed 
emergency assistance that our President has directed, and assure them 
that the American people and the people of the other offshore 
territories stand ready to assist them in their time of need.
  As I said earlier, the people of American Samoa and Western Samoa are 
a strong and resilient people. I know that their faith and their strong 
cultural bonds and traditions will help; them meet this present 
challenge, as they have ones that have come before.
  On behalf of myself, my staff and the people of the Virgin Islands, 
please know that you can count on us in your hour of need, but also as 
you move forward in recovery and then to address the other longstanding 
challenges that your leaders so clearly and passionately outlined for 
us when we were there last month.

                          ____________________