Today Would Have Been My Grandfather's 85th Birthday

And to commemorate such a fine man, I present to you a snippet of the Congressional Record from 12/18/85 - Edward Boland of Massachusetts is the speaker. He begins by paying tribute to the "compassion, skill, and resourcefulness" of Veterans Administation workers.

Today, I want to pay tribute to one of those people, Dave Pogoloff, who has devoted the past 41 years of his life to ensuring that our veterans programs work. I doubt that there is a Member of this House who doesn't know Dave personally, or whose VA caseworker has not benefited from Dave's sage counsel and extraordinary dedication. He has served as the Chief of the House VA liasion for the last 20 years, and it would be impossible to estimate how many seemingly unresolvable VA cases have been straightened out due to his efforts. Others have received the credit for those efforts, most notably the Members of the House who could convey to their constituents the good news that their VA problems had been solved. But all of us know, Mr. Speaker, that our "success" with the VA was merely a reflection of the resolve that Dave made a long time ago to do all that he could to guarantee that veterans received all to which they were entitled from the programs that had been designed for them.

Dave will soon be retiring after serving under seven Presidents and nine VA administrators. His retirement will conclude a career in service to the Nation that began on the battlefields of World War II. Dave carries with distinction a visible rememberance of that combat experience, an experience that gave him several insights into the needs of our veterans. He has labored tirelessly to meet those needs and his labors have been immeasureably valuable. We will miss his experience and his ability in the months ahead, but I know that none of us would deny Dave the chance to spend more time with his wife, Florence and their children and grandchildren.

Congratulations, Dave, on your distinguished career and best wishes for a long and happy retirement.

The gavel given to my grandfather by Tip O'Neill upon his retirement.