[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 12260-12261]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO JOE SNEDEKER

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. LOU BARLETTA

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 27, 2011

  Mr. BARLETTA. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge a 
local television personality and educator who has parlayed his

[[Page 12261]]

regional fame and physical endurance into a community-wide fundraising 
effort for severely mentally and physically handicapped children in 
Northeastern Pennsylvania.
  Joe Snedeker was born at St. Joseph's Hospital in Carbondale, 
Pennsylvania, on February 19, 1966. At an early age, Joe showed an 
aptitude for science. After graduating from Millersville University, 
Joe got a teaching job at Carbondale Area High School. Between 
teaching; marrying his wife, Dawn; and raising three children, Joseph, 
Luke, and Aleah, Joe worked at a local television station on weekends. 
As a sign of his lifelong commitment to education and learning, Joe 
recently finished his master's degree in Biology/Environmental Science 
from East Stroudsburg University.
  In 1999, Joe was hired full-time at WNEP-TV. Over the last several 
years, hundreds of thousands of residents in Northeastern and Central 
Pennsylvania have tuned in to Joe to find out what the daily weather 
forecast would be. Joe not only provides the weather forecast, but he 
also seeks to educate viewers about basic scientific principles.
  Fourteen years ago, Joe, an avid cyclist, initiated an annual charity 
bike ride. For several days each summer, Joe pedals from location to 
location, raising money for severely mentally and physically 
handicapped children at St. Joseph's Center in Dunmore, Pennsylvania. 
Over the years, Joe has started his ride as far away from Northeastern 
Pennsylvania as Atlantic City, New Jersey; Plymouth Rock, 
Massachusetts; Cleveland, Ohio; and Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
  Thousands of miles pedaled adds up to well over a million dollars 
raised--money that supports the outstanding work of the dedicated 
staff, administration, and volunteers at St. Joseph's Center, an 
independent Catholic agency sponsored by the Congregation of the 
Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary that strives to 
provide individuals and families who have special needs the opportunity 
to develop their abilities and potential to the fullest extent 
possible.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend Joe Snedeker for his charitable work on behalf 
of the mentally and physically handicapped children at St. Joseph's 
Center in Dunmore, Pennsylvania. Thousands of people--from the families 
of those children, to the staff and administration of the center, to 
Joe's devoted viewing audience--join me in congratulating him and 
wishing him many years of happy pedaling.

                          ____________________