[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Page 5044]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO CHARLES D. McCRARY

 Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, along with my fellow Alabama 
colleague Jeff Sessions, I wish to pay tribute to Charles D. McCrary, 
who retired this month from his position as the president and chief 
executive officer of Alabama Power Company.
  Mr. McCrary's involvement with Alabama Power extends back to the 
summer of 1970, when he joined the company following his freshman year 
at Auburn University. During a long and distinguished career, he 
assumed positions of increasing responsibility, rising from vice 
president for Southern Nuclear Operating Company, to president of 
Southern Company Generation, chief production officer of Southern 
Company and president of Southern Power Company. On October 25, 2001, 
Mr. McCrary became the tenth president and CEO of Alabama Power, which 
generates electricity for over 1.4 million Alabama customers.
  A Birmingham native, Mr. McCrary attended Shades Valley High School 
and received his bachelor of science in mechanical engineering from 
Auburn University, followed by a juris doctor from Birmingham School of 
Law. He was admitted to the Alabama State Bar in 1979.
  Mr. McCrary is married to the former Phyllis Brantley of Birmingham 
and is the father of two sons, Doug and Alex.
  Throughout his tenure at Alabama Power, Mr. McCrary has served the 
company and its customers with the highest standards of integrity and 
professionalism. He also oversaw Alabama Power during some of our 
State's most severe natural disasters, including Hurricane Ivan in 
2004, which caused 825,701 outages, the largest number of outages in 
company history; Hurricane Katrina in 2005 with 636,891 outages; and 
the tornado disaster on April 27, 2011 with 412,000 outages. In the 
wake of these disasters, Mr. McCrary initiated the policy of 
publicizing when customers could expect their power to be restored. 
This practice of announcing utility restoration commitments has since 
become an industry standard.
  Mr. McCrary also pioneered ``Target Zero,'' a program for ensuring 
that employees are properly trained and equipped to do their jobs 
safely. This practice too has become a touchstone within the utility 
industry.
  Mr. McCrary is a dynamic leader both in his community and throughout 
the State of Alabama, and serves as chairman of the Economic 
Development Partnership of Alabama and on the boards of Regions 
Financial Corporation, Mercedes-Benz U.S. International Inc., 
Protective Life Corporation, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, 
Southern Research Institute, and the Auburn University Board of 
Trustees.
  Committed to fostering economic development at both the regional and 
State levels, Mr. McCrary has advanced cooperative efforts between 
cities, counties, and business leaders in order to bring several 
industries, including automotive, aerospace, and steel manufacturers to 
Alabama.
  Please join me and Senator Sessions in congratulating Charles on his 
retirement and in thanking him for his leadership at Alabama Power, for 
his dedication to improving his local community, and for his decades of 
service to the great State of Alabama. We wish him all the best in his 
future endeavors.

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