[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 21]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 28608]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      THANKING GEORGE McNEILL FOR HIS SERVICE TO THE RIPON SOCIETY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. THOMAS E. PETRI

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 19, 2009

  Mr. PETRI. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize George McNeill 
for his many years of service to the Ripon Society.
  For the past five years, George has served as Chief Administrative 
Officer of the organization. In this position, he has not only run the 
day-to-day affairs of the group, he has also helped position it as one 
of the leading voices of centrist Republican thought in Washington, 
D.C.
  As one of the founders of the Ripon Society, I have to confess--when 
we established the organization in 1962, we could only dream of some of 
the things it has achieved since that time. Through his hard work and 
dedication, not only as the Chief Administrative Officer since 2004, 
but also as a member of the Ripon Board of Directors dating back to 
2001, George has helped turn that dream into a reality.
  In the process, he has not only made a difference in the life of the 
Ripon Society, he has also added another impressive chapter to his own 
rich and full life. It is a life that has taken George from the streets 
of his birthplace in the Bronx to the hills of his ancestral home in 
Scotland, from the jungles of his tour of duty in Vietnam to the 
meadows of his current home in Danby, Vermont. It is also a life 
dedicated to service, and one that has revolved around his loving 
family and devoted friends.
  George has indeed worn many titles in his lifetime, earning the 
respect of friend and foe alike along the way. But the title that he is 
perhaps most proud of is that of husband and father. George and his 
wife Barbara are the proud parents of two wonderful daughters--Megan 
and Caitlin.
  George recently announced that he is retiring as Chief Administrative 
Officer of the Ripon Society. It is a real loss for the organization. 
Those of us who have worked with and gotten to know George over the 
past several years will miss him and are sorry to see him go. But we 
also understand that, after five years of commuting weekly back and 
forth between Vermont and Washington, the time has come to return home.
  We thank George McNeill for his service to the Ripon Society. We 
honor him for his many contributions to the group and for advancing 
policy debate in Washington. And we wish him all the best in the years 
ahead.

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