[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 16844]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       HONORING ROBERT W. DARTER, M.D. OF NAPA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE THOMPSON

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, November 7, 2011

  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition 
of Doctor Robert W. Darter's receiving the Frederick K.M. Plessner 
Award for serving families in a rural county by the Napa County Medical 
Society.
  Dr. Darter was born and raised in Berkeley. He graduated from UC 
Berkeley with honors in public health in 1954 and received his medical 
degree from Northwestern University in 1958. He began working as an 
Epidemic Intelligence Service Office with the Center for Disease 
Control in 1959 and continues to be the Chief Epidemiologist at the St. 
Helena Hospital and Health Center.
  In 1970 he and his two partners formed what is now the Napa Valley 
Family Medical Group, which was one of the first incorporated medical 
groups in the state of California and who now includes eight family 
physicians. Dr. Darter also had the vision in 1976 to buy a 16mb IBM to 
document finances, patient appointments and other aspects of a medical 
practice.
  In 1976 he became President of the Napa County Medical Society and 
has been active in several organizations throughout the years, such as 
the Napa County Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Advisory Board, 
and the Napa County Health and Disability Prevention Board. He obtained 
the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006 from the St. Helena Chamber of 
Commerce.
  He has also given back to his community by being a founding member of 
the St. Helena Public Library and is working on obtaining a charitable 
status for the St. Helena Public Library Foundation. Dr. Darter began 
serving as the side line team physician in 1970 for the St. Helena High 
School Saints and he continues to follow to the team to away games. 
Through the Kiwanis Club of St. Helena he has made several trips to El 
Fuerte, Mexico to bring much needed medical care to the local hospital. 
Yet, his long time passion has been the Boy Scouts, starting as a Troop 
One assistant scout master in 1962 through 1982. In 1991 he won the 
Silver Beaver Award, which is the Boy Scouts highest award given to 
adult leaders.
  Dr. Darter is well known in the Napa Valley for his continued work in 
the community and is fortunate enough to be surrounded by his loving 
family and life-long friends. He and his wife Jan have five children, 
Robert Darter IV, Michael Darter, James Darter, John Darter and 
Kimberly Darter.
  Mr. Speaker, it is appropriate at this time that we acknowledge Dr. 
Robert W. Darter for his decades of devoted service to the Napa Valley 
community on this day.

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