[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 3]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 3745-3746]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       CLAUDE ARTHUR WHARTON, III

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. J. GRESHAM BARRETT

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 17, 2010

  Mr. BARRETT of South Carolina. Madam Speaker, I rise today to 
recognize Claude Arthur ``Skip'' Wharton, Ill, of Seneca, South 
Carolina, and fellow alumnus of The Citadel, for a lifetime of 
distinguished service to the citizens of our state and to our country. 
From his time as a cadet at The Citadel to his current position as 
Director of Business Operations for the Applied Research and 
Development Institute, ARDI, of the South Carolina Research Authority, 
SCRA, Skip has led an admirable life and maintained a strong work 
ethic. His contributions to South Carolina and the United States in the 
fields of government contract administration, compliance, finance, 
budgeting, and costing are truly commendable. In my view, Skip is the 
embodiment of an upstanding and fine American citizen.
  After receiving his undergraduate degree from The Citadel, Skip 
served our country for four years in the United States Army as an 
Armored Cavalry Platoon Leader and a Troop

[[Page 3746]]

Commander in Vietnam and Germany. For his service to our country, Skip 
was awarded the Silver Star Medal, the third highest medal awarded by 
the United States Armed Forces, for combat valor.
  After his military service, Mr. Wharton spent seven years in 
management in small business in both California and Louisiana. From 
1980 through 1987, Mr. Wharton was with the American Development 
Corporation, ADCOR, a defense manufacturing contractor located in 
Charleston, South Carolina. At ADCOR, he was responsible for adhering 
to the Federal Acquisition Regulations, FAR, in the development of 
annual corporate and departmental budgets, in excess of $20 million per 
year; the promulgation and defense of all indirect rates; and the 
formulation of all pricing proposals. In 1988, Mr. Wharton joined SCRA 
in Charleston and served as the Director of Budgeting and Costing. In 
this capacity, he was responsible for financial analyses at the 
project, group, segment, and company levels; corporate budgeting; 
management reporting; and tracking performance against stated strategic 
goals.
  In October of 2000, Mr. Wharton was assigned to ARDI as the Director 
of Contracts and Procurement and was responsible for establishing the 
contracts administration staff and the administrative functions of the 
Composites Manufacturing Technology Center, a United States Navy Center 
of Excellence. Skip also served as the ARDI Facility Security Officer 
and was responsible for all interaction with the Defense Security 
Service; physical security of the office; the safeguarding of all 
classified documents, software and hardware; and the processing and 
maintenance of individual security clearances.
  Through hard work and dedication, Skip has made significant 
contributions to our state and our country. His distinguished service 
has been invaluable, and for this, I applaud him. His dedication to his 
family, friends, and colleagues should stand as an example of what we 
should all strive to be. I join Skip's colleagues at the Applied 
Research and Development Institute, the citizens of our state, and his 
entire family, including his wife, Patricia, his children and 
grandchild, in commending Skip for his lifetime of service to South 
Carolina and this great nation. May God bless them all.

                          ____________________