The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“IN RECOGNITION OF THE OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE OF SIX RETIRING OFFICIALS WITHIN USDA'S OFFICE OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E2126-E2127 on Nov. 29, 2011.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
IN RECOGNITION OF THE OUTSTANDING PUBLIC SERVICE OF SIX RETIRING
OFFICIALS WITHIN USDA'S OFFICE OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT
______
HON. MARK S. CRITZ
of pennsylvania
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Mr. CRITZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the distinguished public service careers of six retiring officers within the Department of Agriculture's Office of Rural Development, RD. These individuals have worked diligently and effectively over many years to promote economic prosperity and safe living in the various rural communities throughout southwestern Pennsylvania. Lambert Rosenbaum, Virginia Stump, Cindy Brandt, Barbara McMillen, Susan O'Donnell, and Mary Ellen Polosky have made clear through the quality of their work at RD that they see a place for rural areas in America's future. These individuals will leave a lasting legacy; their belief in the promise of rural America will surely live on in those who have had the privilege to work with them and manifest itself in all that RD does for the individuals, communities, and businesses of southwestern Pennsylvania for years to come.
Public service has been a calling for each of the six outgoing officials at USDA Rural Development. Lambert Rosenbaum, the outgoing Area Director for the Butler and Westmoreland Area Offices, boasts a 31 year career at USDA. In addition to his civil service, Mr. Rosenbaum served three years of active duty in the Army, during which he served a combat tour in Vietnam and earned the prestigious Bronze Star. He has also served in the Army Reserves for 42 years. Most recently, Mr. Rosenbaum's reserve service took him to Kuwait, where he earned the Meritorious Service Medal. His devotion to the public welfare has clearly made an impression on his children, as two of his sons have served in the Iraq War.
Virginia Stump, a Team Leader and Area Specialist, will leave RD after 30 years of civil service. She has worked extensively on the Water Waste Program, which furnishes rural communities with the means to install sanitary sewers. She has also helped to market several rural development programs, including the Value Added program and the Renewable Energy programs. Ms. Stump is married and has one daughter, as well as twin grandchildren.
Cindy Brant, a Loan Specialist, also has over thirty years of experience in civil service. She began her career with USDA in 1979 as a Comprehensive Employment and Training Act, CETA, Trainee. A year later, she became an Assistant County Supervisor, working out of the Somerset Office until its closure in 2007. While in the Somerset Office, she worked extensively on the Direct Housing Program, helping numerous low-income individuals to purchase homes in rural areas. Upon leaving Somerset, she moved on to the Greensburg Area Office and took on the additional roles of Guaranteed Housing Program Specialist and Multi-Family Housing Program Specialist. In recognition of her outstanding service, Cindy received USDA's Unsung Hero Award in 2009.
In her 28 years with USDA, Barbara McMillen, an Area Specialist, has worked on a number of different projects, including those that provide housing loans and loans to farmers and ranchers who are having difficulty obtaining commercial credit. Over the last seventeen years, she has worked ardently to help 51,450 households and businesses to obtain $331 million dollars in loan and grant funds for public water and sewer service.
Susan O'Donnell, also an Area Specialist, has been with USDA since 1977 and has done extensive work in the business, multi-family housing and community facility programs across six counties. She is extremely passionate about public service, and plans to continue to working to promote the welfare of others through volunteer work upon retirement.
Having performed over 36 years of Federal service, Mary Ellen Polosky has set a laudable example for current and aspiring public servants. While with USDA, she has worked mainly in the Housing Division. She has served in her current capacity for the last 9 years, during which time she has helped numerous individuals living in rural areas to procure loans for home purchases and improvements.
Mr. Speaker, I have had the privilege of working closely with these individuals while serving as the District Director for the late Congressman John Murtha, and can attest that they embody the highest order of integrity and proficiency. We should all be grateful that such exemplary individuals chose to engage full-bore in the effort to secure a prosperous future for rural America. Their work has given hope to countless individuals and businesses in southwestern Pennsylvania. All of us in the Federal Government should attempt to emulate their commendable public service in our own careers.
____________________
