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Floor Speech

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Mr. SHELBY. Madam President, I am pleased this afternoon to commend Mr. Francisco J. Collazo of Grant, AL, for his contributions to our great country and to the State of Alabama.

Born in 1931 in Puerto Rico, Mr. Collazo joined the Army at 15 years of age. He had an exceptionally distinguished career, serving in the Korean and the Vietnam wars and retiring as a chief warrant officer 4.

While in the Army, Mr. Collazo continually worked to further his education. Due to his 30 years of military service, he attended numerous Army technical schools and earned sufficient academic credits to receive the Department of the Army bachelor's equivalency degree in mathematics and computer science.

After his retirement from the Army, he continued his lifelong learning with additional coursework and the study of complex missile systems.

In 2003, the University of Alabama in Huntsville recognized his technical achievements and bestowed upon him an honorary degree of doctor of science.

In 1980, Mr. Collazo and his wife Carmen started COLSA Corporation in their garage in southeast Huntsville, AL. COLSA is a service-disabled, veteran-owned company, and it rapidly grew and received many accolades.

In 1983, COLSA was certified under the 8(a) Business Development Program. The Small Business Administration certified COLSA as a socially and economically disadvantaged company.

In 1988, the SBA selected COLSA as the Regional Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year--such an achievement.

In 1997, COLSA received a Cogswell Award for Excellence in Security Operations.

In 2004, COLSA was inducted into the Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame.

NASA awarded COLSA the Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year Award in 2008.

In 2021, Forbes magazine named COLSA to two of their top lists: Best Employers by State--4th in Alabama; and America's Best Midsize Employers--17th overall in the United States.

Today, COLSA has grown to over 1,600 employees--1,600 employees from zero--and currently ranks as 76 on Washington Technology's Top 100 Federal Prime Contractors.

Frank Collazo has personally received numerous awards and declarations, some I have enumerated. In the military--just a few--he was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal with two oakleaf clusters, the Army Commendation Medal with three oakleaf clusters, and a Bronze Star with one oakleaf cluster for distinguished service during his time in Vietnam.

As an industry leader, the Huntsville and Madison County Chapter of the National Management Association recognized Frank Collazo as the manager of the year 30 years ago, 1991. Mr. Collazo has served as president of the following: the Air Defense Artillery Association; the Air, Space, and Missile Defense Association; the Huntsville Chapter of the National Defense Industrial Association.

In 2018, he received the Davidson Award for his leadership in the defense community. In addition to his leadership in industry, Mr. Collazo has been exceptionally generous in his contributions to local organizations. He funded the Collazo Endowment to retain and recruit students at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. He established the Francisco J. Collazo Scholarship Fund at Auburn University and is an original Partner in Education at the new Alabama School of Cyber Technology and Engineering located in Huntsville.

He is a routine and substantial contributor to over--yes, over--80 charitable organizations in the Tennessee Valley--that is including a lot of Alabama and a lot of Tennessee--personifying his motto when he says ``Character is a matter of what you do when no one is watching.''

I am pleased this afternoon here in the U.S. Senate to join the citizens in Huntsville, AL, and throughout the State of Alabama, in offering my sincere thanks and gratitude to Frank Collazo, and I want to share my appreciation with his wife, Carmen, and his extended family.

Frank has continually demonstrated his commitment to our country, the State of Alabama, and to the community. Basically, Frank Collazo is an outstanding American.

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