[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 10]
[House]
[Pages 14454-14455]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         DeLIGHT BREIDEGAM, JR.

  (Mr. DENT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. DENT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleague 
Representative Ryan Costello in celebrating the life of and remembering 
DeLight Breidegam, Jr.
  If you have a Deka battery in your car, your motorcycle, or tractor, 
it is the offspring of a product manufactured by his company, East Penn 
Manufacturing, and developed by DeLight and his business partner, Karl 
Gasche.

[[Page 14455]]

  DeLight started his business with his father at the age of 20. He and 
his father, DeLight, Sr., worked tirelessly, both at their small 
company and at part-time jobs, to help make ends meet. Through their 
tenacious talent, DeLight grew a business that now employs over 7,000 
people in Berks County, Pennsylvania, and beyond.
  I just wanted to say it was an honor for me to know this great man. 
He drove me around his battery empire. He showed me his farmhouse, and 
I said: ``How did this business begin, DeLight?''
  He said: ``Well, my father sent me out in the backyard to fix the 
battery in the tractor.''
  I said: ``DeLight, I am just glad he didn't send you out there to go 
shovel manure. We would have a fertilizer empire right here in this 
community.''
  Nevertheless, he was an extraordinary man, generous, kind, caring. He 
supported universities--like Moravian College--Lehigh Valley Hospital, 
and so many other charities.
  I wanted to pay tribute to the life and memory of DeLight Breidegam, 
Jr.

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