[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 4]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 5745-5746]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING JEFF COOK OF EAGLE ALLOY, MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN AND PRESIDENT 
                    OF THE AMERICAN FOUNDRY SOCIETY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BILL HUIZENGA

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 6, 2017

  Mr. HUIZENGA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Jeff Cook, Vice 
President of Eagle Alloy Inc. in Muskegon, Michigan, for his long-term 
contributions to Eagle Alloy and the U.S. metalcasting industry. Eagle 
Alloy is an innovative steel foundry providing vital castings for key 
sectors including agriculture, construction, mining, defense and 
railroads. Metal castings are integral to virtually all U.S. 
manufacturing activities. Jeff joined Eagle Alloy in 1986 after 
graduating high school. His first position on the shop floor was as a 
grinder, machining castings on the third shift. He has worked his way 
up over the past thirty years to become Vice President of Sales and 
Marketing.
  Jeff is passionate about attracting the next generation to the 
metalcasting industry and has dedicated significant amount of time 
reaching out to local schools and businesses about careers in the metal 
casting industry. In addition, he has been actively involved in the 
leadership of the local American Foundry Society (AFS) West Michigan 
Chapter for many years. He joined the AFS National Board of Directors 
in 2011, where he spent the past year as its President traveling across 
the country, meeting with thousands of metalcasters and suppliers 
underscoring the importance of taking time to ``Attract. Educate. 
Support'' the next generation of metalcasters. AFS is the major trade 
and technical association for the North American metalcasting industry. 
The association has more than 8,000 members representing over 2,000 
metalcasting firms, their suppliers and customers.
  In Muskegon, Jeff has reached out to educational institutions, 
including local high schools and Muskegon Community College, to better 
communicate the skills needed and the certifications that are in demand 
in the industry. Through the AFS chapter, Jeff has worked with local 
schools to host student night, where they showcase the traveling 
casting kit, known

[[Page 5746]]

as Foundry in a Box. It shows students how to form patterns, melt them, 
the cleanup process behind it, and gives an overview of how castings 
are made.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I congratulate Jeff Cook, 
as he completes his successful term as AFS President, for his strong 
commitment and dedication to Eagle Alloy and to the growth and 
prospering of the metalcasting industry.

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