[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5474]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO DONALD S. POWERS

  (Mr. ROKITA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ROKITA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a significant Hoosier, 
Mr. Donald S. Powers, who passed away on April 21, 2015.
  I would like to express my gratitude for his community service and 
economic development efforts in my hometown of Munster, Indiana. Most 
importantly to me, he was a friend and a mentor who was always ready to 
provide some guidance. More than that, those who claim northwest 
Indiana as their home can also rightfully claim the same kind of 
relationship with Don Powers.
  Mr. Powers proudly fought for our Nation during World War II as a 
Navy fighter pilot and then again in the Korean war. He was a graduate 
of Indiana's beloved Purdue University where he spent several years as 
president of the board of trustees.
  Mr. Powers went on to develop much of Munster's residential 
neighborhoods; and, in 1973, Mr. Powers took part in the creation of 
Community Hospital, which was voted as one of America's 50 best 
hospitals 7 years in a row. In 1989, he developed the Center for the 
Visual and Performing Arts, home to the Northwest Indiana Symphony 
Orchestra and South Shore Arts.
  His efforts in developing Munster led to nationwide accolades for the 
community, even having the town make Forbes Magazine's 25 top suburbs 
for retirement. Mr. Powers was highly regarded in the community and 
throughout Indiana for his philanthropic and business endeavors.
  Indiana and, indeed, the Nation, Mr. Speaker, lost one of its best 
leaders this week, but his legacy will certainly endure in the many 
lives he positively affected.

                          ____________________