[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 12]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 17600]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      IN HONOR OF TOMMY IRVIN, GEORGIA COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE

                                 ______
                                 

                      HON. SANFORD D. BISHOP, JR.

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 15, 2010

  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Tommy 
Irvin, an accomplished public servant and a personal friend. He is 
retiring after devoting over 40 years to his state and country, serving 
as the Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture.
  His 54-plus years of public service began in 1956, when he was 
elected to the Habersham County Board of Education. From there, he went 
on to serve as Chairman of the School Board and President of the 
Georgia School Boards Association. Throughout his time in public 
office, he has remained dedicated to educational advancement in the 
State of Georgia, and as such, he is an honorary Lifetime Member of the 
Parent-Teacher Association of Georgia and the Georgia School Food 
Service Association.
  Commissioner Irvin continued his commitment to education during his 
four terms representing Habersham County in the Georgia General 
Assembly. He served on the House Agriculture, Education, & 
Appropriations Committees and as the Chairman of both the House 
Industrial Relations Committee and the Governor's Conference on 
Education. In addition, he was the Governor's Floor Leader and 
Executive Secretary to the Governor.
  He is the longest serving statewide official in Georgia, having been 
appointed Commissioner of Agriculture in 1969 by Governor Lester 
Maddox. Commissioner Irvin is the only Georgian to serve as President 
of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture.
  In addition to serving as the President of the Southern Association 
of State Departments of Agriculture, he served two terms as the 
President of the Southern United States Trade Association, an 
organization which he helped found to promote the export of Southern 
food and agricultural products.
  Commissioner Irvin has received many honors throughout his 
distinguished career, including the Progressive Farmer Magazine Man-of-
the-Year in Service to Agriculture, the National Award for Agricultural 
Excellence by the National Agri-Marketing Association, the National 
Future Farmers of America Honorary American Farmer Degree, and the 
Southeastern Poultry and Egg Association's ``Workhorse of the Year'' 
award, which is considered to be the most prestigious recognition 
bestowed by the poultry industry.
  He has been inducted into the Halls of Fame of many organizations, 
including National 4-H, Georgia Agrirama, Vidalia Onion, Georgia Seed 
Association, Habersham County, Hall County, and University of Georgia 
College of Agriculture.
  He has received the University of Georgia College of Veterinary 
Medicine's Distinguished Service Award. He received the Richard B. 
Russell Public Service Award, the Jefferson Jackson Day HOPE Award, and 
most recently received the American Farm Bureau Federation's 
Distinguished Service Award for his service as an agriculture leader 
with merit and distinction.
  Commissioner Irvin set up an international trade division in his 
department and pursued markets for Georgia's agricultural producers in 
the Soviet Union, China and Cuba. His initiative has inspired other 
states to follow his lead, and the United States Department of 
Agriculture and leaders in other countries have sought to emulate 
Georgia's procedures to eradicate animal diseases, and control plant 
pests.
  Madam Speaker, the State of Georgia, especially the agriculture 
community, and our nation have greatly benefitted from the tremendous 
leadership of Tommy Irvin. He will be remembered for his ingenuity and 
dedication. His many awards are well earned and he leaves an 
unparalleled legacy as he retires.

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