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Statement of Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr.
Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy (Ret.)
Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and
Atmosphere
February 14, 2002 was an historic day for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, marking the first visit by a U.S. President to NOAA's
Silver Spring, Maryland campus. It was an honor and a privilege to host
President George W. Bush's visit where he announced his latest climate
change initiative. There were many in NOAA who worked tirelessly all
week to ensure that this event was successful, safe and secure.
The person responsible for making this happen as successfully as it
did is Captain Richard R. Behn. With less than one week's notice, Captain
Behn assembled a team of NOAA staff which, to his credit, achieved enormous
success for our great agency. In addition, he coordinated a very large
and diverse contingent of people from the White House, Office of the
Secretary of Commerce, U.S. Secret Service, numerous state and local
law enforcement agencies, public relations coordinators and the press.
Throughout all these activities, Captain Behn's leadership ensured that
the staff worked with dedication and met extremely tight deadlines in
preparing for and executing the Presidential visit.
Captain Behn worked hard to serve the President, Secretary and NOAA
with distinction. He exemplifies a number of NOAA Core Values -- Teamwork,
Ingenuity and Excellence. It is with great pleasure that I recommend
Captain Richard R. Behn for a NOAA Corps Commendation medal for his
performance that clearly exceeded expectations and allowed the President
to clearly recognize the hard work, innovation and expertise that NOAA
provides for our Nation every day.
I would personally like to present this honorary award to Captain Behn
so I may thank him, on behalf of NOAA, for a job well done.
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