[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 14]
[House]
[Pages 19646-19647]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               DR. WALTER S. McAFEE POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 3655) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 1300 Main Street in Belmar, New Jersey, as the ``Dr. 
Walter S. McAfee Post Office Building''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3655

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. DR. WALTER S. MCAFEE POST OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 1300 Main Street in Belmar, New Jersey, 
     shall be known and designated as the ``Dr. Walter S. McAfee 
     Post Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Dr. Walter S. McAfee Post Office 
     Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Montana (Mr. Gianforte) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Mrs. Demings) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Montana.

[[Page 19647]]




                             General Leave

  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Montana?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3655, introduced by the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith). The bill names the United States 
Post Office at 1300 Main Street in Belmar, New Jersey, after Dr. Walter 
S. McAfee.
  Dr. Walter McAfee was a scientist, educator, and adviser to the U.S. 
Army Communications-Electronics Command. He is credited as the first 
person to calculate the speed of the Moon.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the sponsor of the bill.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, the 
gentleman from Montana, for yielding and for the support that he and 
the ranking member provided for this important legislation.
  It is an honor to bring H.R. 3655 to the House today to designate the 
facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 1300 Main Street in 
Belmar, New Jersey, as the Dr. Walter S. McAfee Post Office Building.
  Dr. Walter McAfee was a scientist, educator, and adviser to the U.S. 
Army Communications-Electronics Command and the Fort Monmouth 
community.
  Mr. Speaker, I reached out to the leaders of the Information Age 
Learning Center, also known as InfoAge, several months ago and asked 
them if they could recommend a member of their community who they 
believed ought to be honored in this way, and they recommended Dr. 
McAfee.
  As some of you may know, InfoAge has been the leading organization 
preserving scientific history, innovation, and communications located 
at the former Army camp, Camp Evans, and subpost of Fort Monmouth.
  Dr. McAfee was instrumental in the success of Project Diana, an 
effort by scientists at Camp Evans that pierced the Earth's outer 
atmosphere with high frequency signals, in other words, radar. It was 
his mathematical calculations that enabled the team to bounce the first 
radio signals off the Moon's surface. Without the success of his 
calculations that allowed for communication to occur between Earth and 
space, the achievements of launching the satellites into space or 
sending a man to the Moon would have not been possible.
  It is the achievement of this extraordinary man that actually helped 
launch us into the space age. During his time at Fort Monmouth, Dr. 
McAfee also developed sensors which were used to detect and track enemy 
movements during the Vietnam war. He served as director of a NATO study 
on surveillance and target acquisition, high-priority technologies, 
during the Cold War.
  Dr. McAfee was the first African American to be promoted to GS-16, a 
supergrade civilian position in the U.S. Army Materiel Command, AMC, 
and to be inducted into the AMC Hall of Fame. Throughout his lifetime, 
his achievements were recognized through dozens of awards and honors 
that he received for his contribution to science and to the defense of 
the United States and our allies.

                              {time}  1515

  He was known for his love of learning, his high ethical standards, 
and great sense of humor.
  He passed away in 1995 in Belmar, New Jersey. He and his wife, Viola, 
were married for close to 54 years and are survived by their daughters, 
Diane Mercedes McAfee and Marsha Bera-Morris.
  I thank my colleagues for their anticipated support for this 
legislation.
  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues in consideration of 
H.R. 3655, a bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 1300 Main Street in Belmar, New Jersey, as the Dr. 
Walter S. McAfee Post Office Building.
  Dr. McAfee was born in Texas in 1914 and earned degrees in 
mathematics and physics before receiving a Ph.D. in nuclear physics 
from Cornell University in 1949.
  You have already heard that Dr. McAfee launched this country into the 
space age. Dr. McAfee also made important contributions, as you have 
heard, to this country as an adviser to the U.S. Army during the 
Vietnam war.
  Mr. Speaker, we should pass this bill to commemorate the illustrious 
career of Dr. McAfee and the legacy he leaves behind through his 
impressive scientific accomplishments.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of H.R. 3655.
  I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of this bill, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Montana (Mr. Gianforte) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 3655.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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