Congressional Veteran Commendation for Chief Petty Officer William Anderson

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. FALLON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Chief Petty Officer William ``Bill'' Anderson of Denison, Texas, and award him a Congressional Veteran Commendation. CPO Anderson served in the United States Navy, and his impressive career experience highlights his genuine passion for helping our community.

CPO Anderson was inspired to join the Navy after gaining a deep respect and appreciation for our nation's veterans of prior conflicts. Originally, CPO Anderson wanted to stay in the Navy Reserves, but after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, he wanted to do more to bring the perpetrators of this attack to justice. To accomplish this, he pursued a deployment to Iraq in 2005 and Afghanistan in 2008, where he served in numerous support roles, including the Naval Security Forces and Navy Customs. Furthermore, CPO Anderson qualified as a Seabee Combat Warfare Officer. Seabees are well known for being able to build infrastructure anywhere around the world at a moment's notice. If you needed a military base, airfield, or bridge halfway around the world, CPO Anderson is the person you'd call to get the job done. For his service to our nation, CPO Anderson was bestowed the Bronze Star, Army and Navy Commendation medals, and many more awards. In 2005, he met his future wife Teresa, and they married three years later. Together, they raised two children.

After his retirement from the Navy in 2013, CPO Anderson continued to serve his nation through various civilian roles, and even supported counterinsurgency operations in Afghanistan. When he returned to Texas, CPO Anderson worked at the Denison Dam Power Plant to help maintain Texas' electrical grid. Today, he continues his career with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers providing emergency power relief to those affected by natural disasters. In his recreational time, he is a Scoutmaster for Troop 55 in Pottsboro and Denison, where seven boys have attained the rank of Eagle Scout under his guidance.

I am honored to represent CPO Anderson in Texas' 4th Congressional District. It is a privilege to award him the Congressional Veteran Commendation for his service to our Nation and to the people of North Texas.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source