“I am honoring Walt Worthy. He created a grant that will give millions of dollars to Spokane wildfire victims in memory of his wife, Karen.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a great member of the Spokane community, Mr. Walt Worthy. Many people know Walt and his wonderful wife, Karen, for their tremendous work to revitalize the Davenport Hotel. Today, I honor Walt for his extremely generous establishment of the Karen Worthy Memorial Wildfire Grant that will fund personal $10,000 donations to victims of the Spokane fires. In total, his generous donation could approach beyond $5 million, perhaps even $10 million, depending on how many fire victims are deemed eligible. It was only fitting that this announcement was made at Balboa Elementary School in the neighborhood of the fires and named in honor of his beloved wife, Karen. Karen taught first grade at Balboa Elementary School for nearly 20 years as Walt transitioned from his career as a survival specialist with the United States Air Force into a career as a builder and a developer. I thank Walt Worthy for his generosity to the victims of these terrible fires. I thank him for all he has done for Washington State, our Spokane community, and indeed these United States of America. I am pleased to share his lifetime romance in memory of Karen here on the floor of Congress.”

“I want to honor Ambassador Tim Carney, who died recently from cancer. He served as an ambassador, worked with me in Iraq, and later led a local museum in Spokane. I am thanking him and his wife for their service to our country.”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a great patriot, a friend, and a giant of American diplomacy, Ambassador Tim Carney, who passed away earlier this month after a long fight with cancer. Ambassador Carney was the 14th United States Ambassador to Sudan and the 45th United States Ambassador to Haiti. I got to know Ambassador Carney during my year at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad during the Iraq surge where we worked closely together on issues related to Baghdad. Ambassador Carney is one of those Americans that you read about in storybooks: an adventurer, a scholar, and indeed, truly a diplomat. His wife, Vicki Butler, is equally amazing. Vicki came from a prominent Spokane family. They met in Southeast Asia and had a patriotic romance that spanned the globe and made a lasting impact on Washington State and the United States of America. When Tim finished his diplomatic career, he came back to Spokane with Vicki and served as a very important director of our museum of arts and culture, helping bridge a challenging period in that institution’s time. I remember Tim fondly. Here in this photo you can see Tim and Vicki with me and my wife, Eleanor, and I look to them as an inspiration in my own romance with my wonderful wife. Tim, you will not be forgotten. Vicki, you are loved, and we thank both of you for your tremendous impact on these United States of America.”

• Little substance
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  Speech in the House

  Signal 24 of 100

  Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

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