April 4, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 59 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Pages H3092-H3093]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    HONORING STEPHEN ``POPS'' CULVER

  (Mr. PANETTA asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PANETTA. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor the 
life and legacy of Stephen ``Pops'' Culver.
  Pops, as he was fondly known, lived his life to serve his country 
during the Vietnam war; his students as an elementary schoolteacher; 
and his community as an advocate for suicide prevention and awareness, 
something that was personal to him after the tragic loss of his son.

[[Page H3093]]

  It was that sense of service that guided Pops on an epic 10,000-mile 
motorcycle ride across this great country to raise money for the brand-
new Central Coast Veterans Cemetery on the former Fort Ord. During this 
trip, Pops and his fellow American Legion brothers of Post 31, Crash 
and Phin, the group known as the Black Sheep, carried an American flag, 
which you see here in this photo, from the Central Coast Veterans 
Cemetery to Arlington National Cemetery, where that flag was flown over 
the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
  Now on Memorial Day each year, that flag is flown over the Central 
Coast Veterans Cemetery to honor those who served and sacrificed.
  Based on Pop's service, he was honored as the 2017 Veteran of the 
Year in Monterey County.
  Today, we here in Congress honor Pops Culver not just as a veteran 
but as an American who not only served but understood and lived up to 
his obligation to serve those who served us.

                          ____________________