E2286 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks November 20, 2008 

her relentless spirit, and modesty. She would 

probably tell me get to work rather than offer 

this tribute, but she deserves every bit of 

praise. The people of California and our priceless environment have lost a dear friend. I assure you, Dorothy, we will fight on. 

f 

GEORGE A. BEACH, PHILADELPHIA’S PIONEERING CREATIVE 

COMMUNICATOR 

HON. CHAKA FATTAH OF PENNSYLVANIA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, November 19, 2008 

Mr. FATTAH. Madam Speaker, I invite my 

colleagues in the House of Representatives to 

join me in saluting George A. Beach, a pioneering African-American businessman in 

Philadelphia, who is being honored for a halfcentury of achievement in the fields of design, 

advertising, graphics and public relations. 

George Beach is founder and chairman of 

Beach Creative Communications, the nation’s 

first and oldest African-American owned advertising agency—a firm whose name and 

motto summarize the Beach ‘‘brand’’ for creativity and communication: ‘‘A full service 

agency providing creative solutions for today’s 

diverse marketplace.’’ 

George Beach has won numerous awards 

and commissions for his design and artistic 

flair, his business skills and his broad and 

generous reach into civic and charitable activities. Now he adds a new honor, as the African-American Chamber of Commerce in Philadelphia presents ‘‘A Golden Tribute to George 

Beach,’’ celebrating his 50 years in business, 

on Friday, November 21, 2008. 

George Albert Beach was born in Harlem, 

New York City, on August 14, 1936. By the 

age of 10 he had moved with his family to 

Philadelphia, his adopted home town. His educational background stretches from Gratz High 

School and the University of the Arts in Philadelphia to Paris, where he studied at the 

L’Academie de la Grande Chaumiere and 

L’Alliance Francaise. 

Already an artist and designer, George 

Beach became a young man of business in 

1958 when, fresh from college, he founded the 

Creative Art and Design Studio as a groundbreaking minority enterprise. In another pioneering step, he was the first African American elected president of the Artist Guild of 

Delaware Valley, a position he held from 1964 

to 1967. In 1970, he and two colleagues 

launched the fully illustrated African American 

Historical Calendar, which is marking publication of its 40th annual edition. 

The Studio evolved into Beach Advertising 

in 1974, assuming its present name in 2001. 

The Beach roster of clients and accounts has 

included Pfizer U.S. Pharmaceuticals, Wyeth 

Pharmaceuticals, the University of Pennsylvania, McDonald’s, plus health firms, governmental agencies and public utilities. 

George Beach’s personal artistic work was 

impacted by the onset of rheumatoid arthritis. 

Pain and joint destruction forced him to set 

aside painting for a quarter century. But as 

with everything else in his achieving life, this 

became a challenge and an opportunity. 

Today, painting once again, Mr. Beach brings 

his special expertise to the Advisory Council of 

the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NAIMS), where 

he serves under appointment by the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

And his career as an artist flourishes. He 

has completed a new series of oil on canvas 

paintings that include ‘‘Indivisible,’’ a haunting 

skeleton of the World Trade Center Towers 

embracing an American flag under a full 

moon, which has been exhibited at the San 

Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the 

Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. 

Now, as his varied, productive career continues beyond the half-century mark, with wife 

Mary and sons Timothy and Matthew, George 

Albert Beach carries forward with his varied, 

productive career—always communicating, 

ever creative. He has earned the gratitude and 

admiration of Philadelphians and many beyond our city. Thank you, George. 

f 

EARMARK DISCLOSURE 

HON. THOMAS G. TANCREDO OF COLORADO

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, November 19, 2008 

Mr. TANCREDO. Madam Speaker, pursuant 

to the Republican Leadership standards on 

earmarks, I am submitting the following information for publication in the CONGRESSIONAL

RECORD regarding earmarks I received as part 

of H.R. 2638. 

Defense Division of H.R. 2638—OM, 

ARNG—Non-foam, Special Polymer Twin 

Hemisphere Pad Sets for Personnel Armor 

System for Ground Troops Helmet Retrofit 

Kits—$1,280,000. 

Defense Division of H.R. 2638—OM, N— 

Personnel Armor System for Ground Troops 

Helmet Retrofit Kits to Sustain Navy IPE 

Pool—$1,120,000. 

Legal Name of Requesting Entity: SKYDEX 

Technologies, Inc. 

Address of Requesting Entity: 12503 E. Euclid Drive, Suite 60, Centennial, Colorado 

80111. 

Description of Request: Both earmarks will 

address an unfunded requirement of the Army 

National Guard and the Navy to improve 

shock-absorption padding to retrofit helmets. 

The replacement material is a durable and 

protective polymer. This funding would build 

on roughly $2 million that has been allocated 

for this purpose over the last two years. 

f 

HONORING HARRY OVITT 

HON. KEVIN McCARTHY OF CALIFORNIA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, November 19, 2008 

Mr. MCCARTHY of California. Madam 

Speaker, I rise today to honor Harry Ovitt, a 

resident and community leader from San 

Miguel, California, for his outstanding and exemplary service and leadership to the residents of San Luis Obispo County during his 

tenure as County Supervisor from 1989 

through 2008. 

Harry has been a longtime leader in local 

government who has established and participated in a extensive list of civic organizations, 

all in the pursuit of improving the community 

he represents. During his 19-year tenure on 

the Board of Supervisors, he served as Chairman in 1993, 1999, and 2004, and Vice-Chairman in 1992, 1998, and 2003. He also was 

active on various local boards, including the 

Children-At-Risk Task Force, the Mental 

Health Advisory Board, the Economic Vitality 

Committee, and the Resource Conservation 

District. 

During his time on the San Luis Obispo 

County Board of Supervisors, Harry devoted 

himself to many issues to improve the lives of 

the residents within the County. He worked to 

secure funds to help construct both the Heritage Ranch Fire Station and the Meridian Fire 

Station. He established the North County Government Center in Templeton, which has a 

Sheriff’s Substation and a County Agricultural 

Office. He was also instrumental in bringing a 

new courthouse to Paso Robles. 

Harry understood the importance of having 

adequate transportation infrastructure, and 

worked tirelessly to ensure residents had sufficient and safe roads as the County continued 

to grow. To that end, he has been a passionate advocate of making State Highway 46 

safer for drivers through a widening project of 

this 2-lane highway as well as developing the 

North County Shuttle. He also worked to obtain mobile healthcare units, which visit communities around the County to provide basic 

medical services to residents so they do not 

have to incur the cost of traveling long distances to obtain medical services. Harry also 

worked to improve water quality and accessibility in the County. He formed the North 

County Water Forum, which examines the impacts of residential and agricultural development on the Paso Robles Water Basin, 

chaired the Lake Nacimiento Commission that 

has worked on the Nacimiento Water Pipeline 

Project, and is chairman of the North County 

Water Task Force. 

Prior to serving on the County Board of Supervisors, Harry was a Paso Robles City 

Councilman, a member of the Paso Robles 

Airport Planning Commission, and a past 

chairman of the Paso Robles Planning Commission. In addition to the public offices he 

has held, Harry always remained active in the 

local community. He was the Elks Club Citizen 

of the Year in the late 1980s and an Outstanding Jaycee of the Year. He was also a 

member of the Paso Robles Historical Society, 

the Santa Lucia Boy Scouts Executive Council, the Paso Robles Trail Riders, and a past 

chairman of the United Way North County 

Campaign. He is also a founder of the ClarkOvitt Foundation, a nonprofit organization that 

has served the County since 1992. 

A true mark of leadership is the generosity 

of time and talents that one gives on behalf of 

his neighbors and community. Harry Ovitt exemplifies this time-honored tradition. I commend Harry for his service and leadership in 

San Luis Obispo County, and wish him well. 

f 

HONORING WILLIAM NEUFELD 

HON. JIM COSTA OF CALIFORNIA

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Wednesday, November 19, 2008 

Mr. COSTA. Madam Speaker, I rise today, 

along with Congressmen RADANOVICH, to congratulate William Neufeld upon his induction 

into the Fresno Athletic Hall of Fame. Mr. 


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